The Grey of Night
by flamanipulator
Summary: AU/ from ep. 2:17, Heart. Sam is bitten by Maddy, and turned into a werewolf. sort of. Dean has to learn to think in shades of grey, rather than the black and white that he's used to. continues through season 3, VERY loose commonalities with TV storyline
1. Chapter 1

_Alright, so here is a new story. It is an AU/continuation from Heart, episode 2.17 Sam is turned into a werewolf, and it doesn't go over well with his demon blood. Dean has to think in shades of grey, rather than the black and white that he had always known.  
_**  
The Grey of Night**

**Chapter 1**

**Fade to Grey**

Sam and Madison slept the day away, celebrating her release from the curse. They had cut the bloodline, and she had remained human for an entire night; it deserved Dean's kind of reward. As they slept, Sam had dreams; pleasant and otherwise. The other dreams were of Madison changing him, and the two of them leaving together to live as nomads; neither of them wanted to hurt other people. The good dreams replayed the scene of the day over, and over again.

Sam awoke from one of the less-than-pleasant dreams to a light snuffling noise, a low groan of pain. His dreams mixed in with the reality around him, leading him back to a dream he had previously seen; one where Madison changes him after the curse was broken. She would change while he was asleep and bite him gently, barely breaking the skin. She would then steal off into the night to await the transformation of her mate.

Sam was pulled from the half-dream when a prick of pain pierced the junction between neck and shoulder. His eyes snapped open to reveal Madison standing from her crouch, directly above him, her lips a deeper shade of red from blood. "Madison?" He croaked, jumping after her as she bolted for the window. Her eyes flashed a steely blue as she growled at him; not threatening him, pleading for him to stay there. "Madison!" He shouted as she jumped from the third story window. He watched as she flipped agilely down to the pavement, using various window ledges and drain pipes to avoid falling.

Sam ran back to dress; he had to tell Dean. He was pulling his shirt on when a blinding pain shattered his arm, shocking him off of his feet. He cried out as he fell, his right hand flying to clutch his screaming shoulder. He could feel nothing but swollen skin; the werewolf venom had already healed the bite, almost completely.

He struggled through his pockets, barely reaching his phone before another sharp spike of pain blinded him. Sam shakily opened the phone and managed to call his brother, his burning fingers pressing several wrong buttons on the way. "Sam?" his brother asked, wondering at his late-night call. "Dean!" Sam grunted through clenched teeth. "Get…Here now! Argh!" His left arm spasmed as another wracking bolt of pain shot through him, causing the phone to fly a good four feet away.

The pain had grown exponentially, piercing every inch of his body with blazing needles. His mind did not register the scuffling at the window, or the soft footfalls that approached him. He did feel as the feather-light touch of fingers brushed at his shoulder, just above the bite. Fire screamed through the spot, like pins-and-needles, only much worse. A whimper went unnoticed above him as he shouted out loud again, voicing his pain.

Madison had returned, her instincts telling her that something was wrong. She felt fire slide briefly up her back, freezing her mid-step. _My mate_. She thought single mindedly, turning from the man she had been stalking to race back to the building. She lunged at the brickwork, using cracks and windows as footholds to scale the wall of the apartment complex.

She slipped in the window, immediately catching the throbbing heartbeat of her Sam; her mate. She winced at his groans, the pain screeching deep within her, torturing age-old instincts to protect the mate at all costs. She knelt down beside him, brushing just above the faded bite with her fingers. She nearly clawed her own eyes out when he screamed in pain at her touch, scratching at her own arms as punishment.

She had done this; she had killed her mate. Her bite to make him join her, had gone wrong, and was killing him. There had been no danger when she bit him, being as gentle as her teeth allowed her; he had barely even bled. She had raced from the room to stop herself from eating him, his freed blood calling out to her senses. Her instincts denied them though, forcing her away from the one she loved.

Sam screamed again, making her tear out chunks of her hair in response. Her own physical pain felt less than her mental pain when he screamed. Her animalistic mind was destroying itself, tearing itself apart in its inability to protect her Sam, the only thing that she would ever choose above food.

Madison's own consciousness began to bleed through the animal's instincts, causing her to enter an elevated state of awareness. She could sense all around her, using the wolf's senses to give information to her awaking human mind. Sam's screams tore her up, that instinct still more powerful than any human mind could hope to be. She raced to the front room, and faced the wall opposite the door. _Sam would call brother._ She reasoned primitively, turning to attack the wall with her sharp nails.

BEDROOM HELP SAM

She slashed the words into the wall, the deep gouges clearly readable to anyone who stepped through the door. Madison sprinted back to the bedroom, spotting Sam's phone lying on the floor. She managed to pick it up without crushing it in her shaking hands, her mind barely comprehending the words on the screen. _PHONEBOOK._ She read slowly. _That call Dean._ She pressed the button below the word, and glared as the bright light opened a new page. She clawed at the down arrow, nearly breaking the phone as she scrambled for Dean's phone number. Finally she recognized the name, and pressed the green call button.

Madison dropped the phone to the floor, listening with enhanced hearing as it rang only once before Dean's voice called out, "Sam?! Where are you?" She could hear the frantic undertone; even hear Dean's heart beating through the phone. Sam's scream pulled her from her blood-induced haze. She snarled into the phone, the sound becoming a scream as she tried to form words.

Her teeth clenched together in pain at Sam's howls, she clenched her throat to form sounds that her teeth could not. "Gheeng! Hewp! Hram ghying!" She desperately hoped that the man could understand her, the words barely understandable to her own ears. "Madison? Madison, where is Sam?" Dean demanded. Sam's shouts were the only things preventing her from losing her mind as she could hear the frantic beating of his heart. "Aparkmenk!" She growled as her throat began to hurt from the strain that talking put on it. "The apartment? Madison, what is going on?" She heard the sound of the impala's engine picking up speed, Dean rushing now.

Madison had returned to Sam without answering, dragging the phone with her. She knew that Dean would be the only person able to help her mate, Sam's screams digging into her mind. Madison gasped, her head throbbing in pain, as she saw Sam's new development. His veins were appearing in his skin, black intruding upon the normally blue-invisible lines. His skin was spider-webbing with the veins, each tube larger than a hair's-breadth appearing in his skin.

Sam howled with renewed vigor as the lines clawed through his face, a deep network of roots spreading along his cheeks. They reached his eyes, which flew open to reveal yellow corneas and deep black veins running through them. His irises were an icy blue with a black pupil in the center. The pupil resembled a cat's, a vertical slit widening towards the middle. Madison stared in horror as the black consumed his entire eye, leaving just the iris among the pools of night.

His teeth tapered into points, blood leaking from his gums. Madison clenched her arms tight, her nails piercing her skin, once again. She ignored Dean's screams from the phone, demanding to know what was going on. A car door slammed down in the street, causing Madison to fly to the window. She saw Dean racing towards the building, and she flew to unlock the main door so that he could enter immediately.

She slashed at her wrists as another scream from Sam shattered part of her mind, her protective instinct killing her. She was worthless; she could not protect her mate. He would die because of her. She could not survive being such a failure. Her mind tore itself to ribbons, and she howled as she fell next to the flailing Sam, his pain clawing deeper than her nails ever could.

Dean smashed open the door and his eyes immediately flew to the clawed message on the wall. His feet carried him mindlessly to the bedroom, to find a bleeding Madison on the ground, howling at Sam's screams. He gasped as he took in his brother, the black veins stretching out across his long body. Madison's eyes flew to him as she heard him breathe, her eyes streaming with tears.

Sam's breathing stopped. The silence rang through the air louder than church bells. His thrashing had stopped, his eyes closed in sleep. His body was still littered with dark veins, however, preventing Dean from relaxing even the tiniest bit. Madison reached down to cup Sam's face gently, using the pads of her fingers to keep her nails away.

Sam's eyes flew open, and both Dean and Madison were hurled into the nearest wall. "Sam!" Dean cried as Madison howled. He looked and saw glass from a picture behind her splayed on the ground; some of it was obviously digging into her back. Dean returned his attention to his little brother, watching in awed horror at the sight before him.

Sam was fighting with himself. His left eye was entirely black, while his right eye was that of a typical werewolf's. His teeth were no longer pointed, but human. "No, stop!" His mouth cried out while his body thrashed, pinned in place by nothing. _No, I will not tolerate werewolves in this body!_ An awful voice cried into their minds, Sam's black eye flashing in anger. His hand flew to his face, but froze before it could touch the eye. "Dean, help me!" Sam cried out as his hands were thrown away from him as they flew to attack his face.

Sam was hurled onto the bed, his hands and legs forced out onto the mattress. _I said stop!_ The voice cried into their minds. "No, let me have my body back!" Sam shouted to no one.

"Sammy?" Dean asked, struggling against the invisible bonds holding him. He turned to look at Madison, who was staring blankly at the floor, blood dripping slowly from her back. Dean could see her breathing, so he was not worried about her being dead.

Sam managed to struggle into a semi-sitting position, his werewolf eye catching sight of Madison hanging limp against the wall. He smashed his fists into the bed as he cried, "Maddy!" and he flew onto his feet. He lunged at her, but was caught in mid-air by nothing. He shouted again as he was hurled to the ground, smacking his head against the wooden floor.

Sam's eyes flashed back to normal briefly, in which time Sam began chanting a familiar ritual. "Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas…" He twitched as his eyes flooded back to their unnatural configuration and his jaw snapped shut, cutting off the rest of the exorcism. _Oh no you don't. I don't plan on leaving this body any time soon, and that little nursery rhyme won't do you any good, Sammy boy!_ Dean shivered as the demonic voice carried through the air like a black cloud. _Now for some payback!_

Madison began to scream. She jumped from lifeless wall-flower to wailing banshee in a matter of words. Sam howled at her pain, his wolf instincts flaring up against the demon's power. Madison's screams faded as Sam wrenched his body from the ground, snarling as he once again tried to claw his eyes own eyes out. _This has got to stop…_ I thought. I then remembered an exorcism of sorts, used when a demon was too bonded to the body it was in. _It's awful to think that Sam is bound this deeply to a demon, but it's worth a shot._

"Somnus te, omnis immundus spiritus, asmatis pro vinculum sententia professio ut is somes," I muttered quietly, focusing my entire attention on Sam and the words coming from my mouth. Sam's body twitched and then froze, his head swiveling towards me. My mouth was clapped shut, stopping the rest of the short incantation. Sam took up another one. "Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas-" The demon was too preoccupied with one of us to stop the other. I began chanting again the instant my mouth was free.

"Haud diutius vadum vos torqueo putus animus intus-" I froze as Sam's black eye began to change from black to yellow. My mouth stopped working, and I could no longer draw in breath; Sam was having the same problems. Madison dropped to the ground as Sam's face turned red, his werewolf eye fading into white with a yellow center. _I am going to kill both of you._ The demon's voice pounded through my skull. Madison crept towards him from behind, her eyes sharp and deadly.

_I will destroy Sam and this werewolf in his mind, and then bleed you with his body. I am going to control this boy, and all of his glorious powers. It might even be useful to be a werewolf! _I flinched at his words, not wanting my baby brother to be dead before me. I struggled against the invisible bonds, futilely attempting to pull air into my screaming lungs.

Madison chose that moment to break his hold. She jumped forward and landed on his back, slamming her teeth down into his shoulder. She bit deep and hard, wrapping her limbs around his body as tightly as she could. Sam gasped in a lungful of air as I did, the demon distracted by the intense pain that was now throbbing in its neck.

It hurled Madison into the wall, breaking the plaster. _I'm going to kill you._ The dark voice said, deadly quiet for once. Sam raised his hand towards Madison and began to clench his fist; Madison's eyes grew wide with pain. A soft crunching sound could be heard, and then she fell to the ground as a limp bag of bones. Blood trickled from her mouth, which caused Sam to begin shaking.

Dean stared in shock as Sam's fingernails grew long and sharp, gasping as his brother whirled around to face him. He stared at Sam's now icy blue eyes, vertical slits for irises, and his razor sharp teeth. I'ng going kill you!" He growled, raising his hand slowly to his face. His fist clenched, and a bright light blasted within him. Sam screamed, his back arching towards his clenched fist as light glared from his throat and eyes.

Sam collapsed back to his feet, gasping for breath, as the fist relaxed. It then clenched again, causing the light to explode from within him for a second time. Dean's brother was choking on nothing as he was lifted from the ground, his back arched in pain. _You can't…kill me! You're…coming with…wolf!_ Dean rushed forwards as the demon's voice screamed in pain. Sam relaxed his hand and the light died, sending Sam crashing to the floor. Dean caught him and managed a controlled fall instead of a neck-breaking one.

"Sam. Sammy! Come on bro, wake up!" Dean slapped Sam gently while shaking him, trying to force his brother to wake up. Dean pressed his fingers to Sam's pulse point and breathed a sigh of relief when he caught a weak flutter. Dean grabbed his brother into a hug, awkward because of the younger man's position on the floor. "Aw man, Sammy! You had me worried that you wouldn't make it! Now you just have to wake up bud. Okay? Sammy, can you wake up for me?" Dean was never beyond pleading when it came to his brother.

Dean looked over Sam's battered body while he waited for the boy to reawaken. He noticed that the dark web of veins, that had littered his brother before, was now gone; the black faded back into dim blue with the removal of the demon. Dean wondered briefly how the demon had entered his brother in the first place.

Sam coughed lightly and opened his eyes, blurrily taking in the sight of his older brother cradling him in his arms. "Hey…De." He muttered quietly, his voice sounding like he hadn't spoken in weeks.

"Sam! You're up dude! Want to tell…" Dean trailed off as Sam's eyes opened the rest of the way, revealing shockingly pale blue irises with a vertical slid for a pupil. "Sammy, what is up? I thought that the demon killed the werewolf when it died?!"

"I dunno…Dean. I think that…it only killed the werewolf's mind. I can still hear…your blood pumping and…it sounds good. But it is like not eating candy, instead of a mindless hunger that overrules everything." Sam's voice grew steadily stronger as he spoke; realizing that what he was saying was true. He wanted to eat Dean, but it was in the way that a kid wants to eat Halloween candy; it looks really good, but it's resistible. He then noticed that Dean's and his were the only heartbeats in the room. He squirmed in his brothers arms until he could look behind him, to the broken form lying on the ground.

Before Sam could tell what he was doing, he was flying across the room to Madison, having forgotten entirely about Dean. She flipped face-up without Sam touching her, and his hands ghosted across her still body. He rested his hand above her heart, listening and feeling for any signs of life. He keened a high wail, a howl, as he accepted that she was dead, the death of his mate hitting his chest like a wrecking ball. The werewolf inside was dead, but his instincts were still there; he knew that Madison would have been the perfect mate, the perfect person for his supernatural life.

Dean opened his eyes to see Sam kneeling in front of him, his icy blue eyes trained on Dean's neck. "Pulse is good…" he then put a hand over Dean's eye, and then pulled it away after a few seconds. "Pupil response is fine; no concussion." It was then that Sam noticed his brother's watching gaze. "Oh, Dean. You're up. Um…I'm sorry." He said, scratching the back of his head.

"Sam…what just happened?" He asked, rubbing the sore spot on his head. He noticed Sam's glassy eyes and the red rimming them. Then he took in Madison's dead form on the ground, and put two and two together. Sam was dying on the inside; it was time for Dean to do some patching up. "I threw you-"

"You know what?" Dean cut him off. "I don't care." He continued lightly, sitting up slowly. "Are you okay, Sam? If you can walk fine, let's get Bobby down here."

"Dean…What about Mad…Madison? We can't just…leave her here." Dean broke down at the sight of his brother so hurt, not even able to hold up the façade to help him. "Do you want to bury her, or cremate her?" He asked gently, knowing how close Sam was to shattering into a million pieces. Sam took several minutes to clear himself up enough to answer. Dean didn't like the answer though.

"I could have saved her…Dean. If I had managed to use my power before the demon killed her…I could have saved her." Dean sighed as Sam collapsed into him, his heart-wrenching sobs wracking his entire body. "Sam…" Dean started, but he didn't know what to say. _What do you say to someone who had the power to stop themselves from killing their loved one, but couldn't access that power until they were already dead? _He just wrapped his arms tightly around his little brother, and let him cry.

Sam finally dried himself out, and he pulled back slowly. Dean kept contact with his arm though, knowing that Sam was never okay enough to be physically alone, on any level, after a huge crying jag like that. "We'll cremate her. I don't want any demons possessing her dead body." Dean nodded solemnly, standing up to help Sam to his feet. He started towards Madison's body, when it lifted itself off the ground. He turned to see Sam with his hand raised, and then he flipped it and beckoned towards himself. Madison's body floated quickly over to Sam, folding itself into his arms. "I'm never going to get used to that." Dean muttered to himself as he followed Sam out the door.

It was still dark by the time they had built up the funeral pyre, Sam using his new psychic powers to gather all the wood quickly. Sam said his final words to Madison, wishing her well in Heaven. He froze as he said the last part though, and turned to Dean. "Dean…what if she doesn't make it. To Heaven, I mean." Dean paused to think, trying to find a good answer for Sam about what happens to a werewolf. He had never thought about it before, always taking it as black and white; werewolves kill people, so they are evil. What if it isn't the werewolf's fault though, like Madison? What if they don't know what they're doing, and are willing to try to stop? Dean hated shades of grey, but he would have to learn to live with them. After all, his Sammy was a super-powered freak, but he wasn't evil. Dean could never kill his brother, for anything; he would always find a way to save him.

He thought long and hard about his answer, hoping that it would put Sam's mind to rest. "Sam, I think that she'll be fine. She may have been a werewolf, and a killer, but it wasn't a conscious decision. I think that, because she was willing to try to stop herself, and because she wasn't even conscious for the murders, that she can't be held responsible for committing them. And the werewolf thing, well…That's not her fault either. She didn't ask the guy to bite her.

"Sam, I am no judge, but she helped to save your life. If I were in charge, that right there would put her above anyone who hadn't saved another, regardless of what they had done in the past. I am positive that she'll be fine, Sam. She made it to heaven; if she didn't, then we are both so totally screwed." Dean smirked at the last line, causing Sam to chuckle lightly. _Good, it worked._ He thought, smiling at his brother's smile. "Thanks, Dean."

"Hey, no chick-flick moments." He replied, turning to walk away. His phone rang, and Bobby's voice came out from the other end. Sam listened to their conversation for several seconds before Dean noticed and asked, "Sam, can you hear what he's saying?" Sam nodded. Dean explained it to Bobby, who then began talking about how they should come straight to his house. Dean hung up and turned to Sam. "Alright, Snoopy. Let's get you to Charlie Brown's house so that he can check you out. I doubt that Bobby has ever dealt with a psychic werewolf before. This should be fun." Sam rolled his eyes at the heavy sarcasm in Dean's voice, turning to follow his brother into the night.

**Hey, so let me know what everyone thought. Please review, I swear I'll reply. Love it, hate it? **

**BTW, I have two more stories up. Go check out my profile to see them. They're both supernatural, but one of them's a crossover with Twilight. I would love some input from that story, as that is the main one I'm working on right now. please go check em out!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright, so here's the next chapter. I got enough support that I decided to continue the story, and I have a whole thing planned out now, at least until mid third season. Heart was right at the end of the season, so you know what's coming next...  
In this chapter is some stuff that could be VERY heavily implied as Wincest. it's not, and it never will be. Don't worry, it has to stay T, remember?**

**Chapter 2**

**That Could Be Misinterpreted**

Sam was starving. He had eaten three bacon double-cheeseburgers, rare, at their last stop, but he was dying for something else. He could feel the urge to jump from the car and hunt down fresh meat; fresh human.

Dean kept stealing glances towards his brother, and always saw his clenched fists, his eyes straining against an unseen force. "Sammy? You okay?" he had not asked yet, knowing that his brother would lie just to reassure him, but he could not keep it in any longer. Sam turned his gaze away from the faceless landscape to focus his icy eyes on Dean. "I'm starving, Dean." He hadn't expected a truthful answer, and the look in Sam's eyes told him exactly what Sam was starving for. "Just focus on me, Sam. Take your mind off of other possible meals." Dean knew that Sam would never hurt him, so he felt confident that the suggestion would only be a defense mechanism for his brother.

"You're a different problem altogether." Sam muttered quietly, knowing that Dean couldn't have heard him. Sam did not want to eat his brother anymore; their bond was far stronger than any hunger could ever be. He wanted to bite Dean; Sam wanted to taste Dean's blood and then make him just like himself. He focused on Dean's pumping heartbeat, because it did help him to take his mind off of food, even if it put him on darker tracks.

Listening to his brother's heart led his mind off on other vendettas. The sound linked back to when he killed his inner demon; his heart had been pounding in his ears, drowning out most other sounds.

_Sam saw Madison lying on the ground, and could feel inside of her; her heart had been crushed. He felt unbridled rage and pain flare up within him, and he felt his hand moving of its own accord. Again. He felt the monster within him rising up, but he was powerless in his own body, unable to control any more than his mouth._

_The telekinesis of the demon was pushing his hand down, but the werewolf would not be denied. Sam felt his mind open and connect with the demon, opening a broad avenue of alternate possibilities. _

_And then he was dying. Sam felt a searing pain scorching his chest and stomach, and he could not see around the blinding light that had swamped his vision. He could feel the werewolf fighting inside of him, focusing all of its and Sam's mental forces into holding their hand steady; it linked them to the demon that was controlling most of Sam._

_Sam's lungs were screaming for air, but the death of the demon was ceasing all life processes. His heart was pounding in his ears, and he felt the demon and werewolf ripped from his mind, but darkness encased him before anything else could register._

"Sam!" Dean was shaking him, but he had been too caught up in the memory to notice. "Sam, we're here." Sam felt drool hanging from his chin, and realized with a start that he had fallen asleep. Dean had already gotten out of the car, and Sam opened his door to follow suit.

He froze as a steady and wet, sloshing throb met his ears. He turned to look at the house, and saw Bobby standing in the doorway, talking to Dean. He may have wanted to bite and turn Dean, but he wanted to eat Bobby; to rip his heart from his chest and sink his teeth into the soft, thumping…

"Dean…" he moaned out, knowing it hadn't reached his brother's ears. _DEAN! STOP ME!_ He forced his thoughts into his brother's head, causing Dean to turn around in confusion. He caught sight of Sam sprinting towards them, but he wasn't his brother; Sam's fingers were now claws, and his teeth were razor sharp. His eyes were feral as he charged them, aiming for Bobby's pulsing neck.

Dean hurled himself at his brother, tackling his broad chest. They crashed to the ground, and Dean was surprised to find Sam not fighting back, allowing him to straddle his chest and bind his arms beneath Dean's knees. He leaned down and grabbed Sam's face, forcing him to look into his eyes. "Sammy! Focus, Sam! You don't want to hurt Bobby." Sam already was beginning to struggle beneath him, and he knew that it was a losing battle; Sam could easily overpower him in this state, especially with psychic powers at his disposal.

_Psychic powers…_ Dean thought back to the bedroom with the demon, and an idea shot through his head. "Sam, you're still in there, right? Hold yourself down with your powers!"

"I…can't…Dean, I want…so hungry!" Okay, so maybe Sam was at the wheel. Dean released on of Sam's arms, but grabbed it with his hand and forced it against his chest. "Focus on me, Sammy. Ignore Bobby and focus on me." Sam began to thrash his head back and forth, and then smashed it into the ground; away from Dean. "Dean…don't…I want…I want to bite you, Dean! I want you to come with me almost as much as I want Bobby!" Sam turned his glare to Dean after struggling to keep his attention from Dean's heartbeat.

Dean's voice was low and calm when he spoke next, the same honesty lacing it that Sam had heard for the past several hours whenever anything remotely serious was talked about. "Then bite me, Sam." Sam stopped thrashing and stared at his brother, searching for any sign of deceit in his brother's eyes; he found none. "I can't do this alone Sam. I can't help someone who can't start to help themselves, even if it's you. I sure as hell won't kill you, so just bite me, and let me come along for the ride." Dean let go of his brother's arm and leant down even further, pressing his forearm right against Sam's chin.

"Dean, what are you-"

"Shut up, Bobby!" Dean turned to yell at the extremely confused and worried hunter.

Sam was struggling against himself with Dean's arm pressed against his lips. He was clenching his jaw tightly, fighting every instinct that told him to bite his brother and turn him into a werewolf. "No…Dean…Get away from me…I can't…don't want…"

"I'm dead serious, Sam. If you can't resist enough to give me time to help you, then I don't want to. Bite me." Dean was glaring down at Sam now, wiggling his arm so that Sam's lips parted slightly, his clenched teeth touching the flesh." Sam was still starving for Bobby's blood, but his instincts were losing the fight. The regret at losing control was bleeding through his every thought, weakening and tainting the pull he felt towards his brother, and the old hunter.

Dean saw the frenzied light in Sam's eyes die out, so he removed his arm and began to get off of his brother's chest. Sam remained completely still as Dean stood up, reaching back a hand to help him off of the ground. "You're okay, Sammy. You can handle it." Sam slowly reached up and grabbed Dean's hand, stumbling as he was hauled to his feet.

Sam began listing off everything that made Bobby important to him in an attempt to lessen his potential as food; Sam would be able to handle it, eventually, if he bit and turned either of them but if he _killed_ either one, he would never forgive himself. Bobby's heart was still sloshing wetly in Sam's ears, however, and it was pulling Sam's focus away from why he _didn't_ want to eat the man.

Sam felt himself losing it again, so he turned quickly and mashed his face into Dean's neck, wrapping one arm around his chest while the other was draped over his brother's shoulder. "Dean!" Bobby cried out, only seeing Sam lunging towards his brother's throat. Dean froze at the shout, but relaxed as much as possible when he felt Sam pressing every sense organ his brother owned into Dean. Dean wrapped his right arm back up and around Sam's head, making sure that his wrist was pressed against his ear. "Are you okay, Sam?"

Sam could no longer sense anything about Bobby, his brother's presence overwhelming all of his senses. He had three of his brother's major pulse-points within four inches of his head, drowning out any other distractions. He breathed in his brother's scent deeply, purging Bobby's from his memory. Bobby's scent had turned into a flavor, from lingering in the air so long, so Sam opened his mouth to replace it with the taste radiating off of Dean. Dean's heart pumped beneath Sam's arm, and his carotid and radial arteries were pressed against both of his ears.

Sam was thoroughly distracted.

Away from the fog-inducing presence of Bobby, Sam was able to tune out the enthralling music of Dean's pulse, and focus on not eating anyone. He thought of how Bobby had been like a father to them, had helped them out of more scrapes than Sam cared to count. His mind was going over every memory or detail of the old hunter as they shuffled forward. Dean was constantly adjusting his position, the awkward embrace making it difficult to keep all of Sam's senses clear of Bobby.

"Is he going to be okay, Dean?" Bobby asked, torn between worry for Sam and worry about being eaten by Sam. "Don't talk, just for a few minutes. Okay, Bobby? Sam's working." The boys shuffled past their father-figure and Dean felt Sam tense. Sam opened his mouth wide and latched onto the junction between Dean's neck and shoulder, but he didn't allow his teeth to touch down. Dean shivered and nearly puked when he felt Sam's tongue press against his skin, but he suppressed his response and let it happen; his brother needed it so that he didn't kill Bobby.

"You know, Sam, when I said that I would do literally anything for you, I never thought that that would include letting you make out with my shoulder." Dean said with a chuckle, turning and placing his chin on Sam's head so that his voice reverberated around Sam's system. Sam ignored him and focused on his brother's various distractions; he could _feel_ Bobby's presence, could feel his heart pumping and sending vibrations through the air towards Sam.

Sam was still trying to rewire his instincts to accept Bobby as part of the pack, when other images began to flash through his brain. All of them were about Bobby through the years, but Sam was watching himself in many of them. Bobby stitching up Sam's knee; Bobby tucking him into bed when their father was out hunting. Sam could feel emotions in all of them, mostly love and respect for the man who was taking such great care of him.

Sam had felt them sit down on the couch, and he had to adjust his position so that he was still in complete contact with Dean. He spent several more minutes watching these unbidden flashes of Bobby, and realized that Dean was not in any of them, because Dean was _watching_ them all happen; Sam was living Dean's memories of Bobby. The hunger for Bobby's blood slowly faded to a hunger for Bobby to become like him, and that was a much easier urge to resist.

Sam figured that he should stop being surprised by his powers as he pulled away slowly from Dean; they would probably manifest more than just the two that had shown up. "You okay now, Sammy? Not going to kill Bobby, are ya?" Dean looked carefully at Sam's eyes, judging just how much control his brother had over his instincts. Sam sat back against the couch next to Dean, but kept a hold on his brother's wrist, his fingers lightly pressing against the pulse there.

"No, I'm okay. At this point it's more of a bite-and-turn desire than a bite-and-kill thing. It's harder than not biting you, but I can deal." Bobby stared in amazement at the younger hunter, who was staring down at the floor now, the pure image of depression and regret. "Sam, you got nothin' to be ashamed of, kid!" Bobby was immensely impressed by the restraint that the boy was showing. "You've been a werewolf all of a few hours, and you've gone from a bloodthirsty lunatic letting your brother pummel you so that you didn't hurt anyone, into an almost normal human being within the last ten minutes!"

"I nearly killed you, Bobby." Sam said brokenly, his voice cracking in shame. Bobby had been ready for that. "And anyone else in your position would have!" Sam remained silent, stubbornly refusing any form of praise for _nearly_ killing him, instead of actually doing. Dean chose that moment to change the subject.

"So, the demon that was semi-possessing Sam…Do you have any insights, Bobby?"

"Honestly, I'm probably more stumped than you boys. I ain't ever heard of a semi-possession. Then again, I've never heard of a werewolf, a demon and a human fighting over the same body, either. Werewolves that are feral during the day are just as unheard of as all of that. Whatever has happened with Sam here is completely unique."

Sam's stomach growled and he felt the urge to run from the house and kill something; he grabbed Dean's wrist more tightly and felt himself pushing his hunger into his brother. "Sammy's hungry, we're going to grab some grub." Dean announced, standing. Sam came with him, keeping his hand firmly above Dean's pulse-point. "I'd better come with; maybe grab the food while you two wait in the car." Bobby began to rise, but the boys had already started walking towards the door. With a wave of his hand, and a "Nah, we'll be fine." the boys were gone.

****

"Alright, Sammy, you sit tight. I'll be back in ten minutes with the grub. If anyone comes within spittin' distance of the car, jack up the music, plug your nose and put your head down." Sam nodded and reluctantly released Dean's wrist. Dean practically flew as he jumped out of the car and shut the door. Sam, thankfully, heard nothing of the outside world except for a small murmur that was present at any public area.

Sam had been in the car for a total of five minutes, when he saw a man walking between the cars in the rear-view mirror. He reached for the volume control, blasted AC/DC to the car's capacity, and tucked his head between his knees. His hand went under his thighs to grab his nose. Not two seconds later, he felt the tapping on the window; the music was too loud to hear anything beyond his own thoughts, and even those were hard to latch onto.

Sam waited for another thirty seconds, and the tapping was incessant. He reached for his cell phone, not trusting himself to do anything but call Dean. _Dean help_ he typed into a message, sending it. He returned to his fetal position, hoping that the guy would just leave. Sam could _feel_ the man outside, and his stomach was tearing itself apart. He could feel himself reaching out to the man's mind, his stomach thinking to bring the man closer.

_What's this guy's problem, man? He has the music up so loud that I would hear it in Texas! And what is with him, ignoring me? Does he just have no manners?_ Sam could hear the man's thoughts now, his mind brushing against the person outside. He began reaching inside his head, searching for the control switch; a trick he was copying from Andy's brother.

And then his door was swung wide open. The smell of the man and his pulsing heart smashed into Sam's senses full force, and Sam found himself flying from the car. _So hungry…_ was all that Sam thought as he took in the startled man who had jumped back a good three feet. Sam lunged, his eyes trained on his jugular.

Something smashed into Sam mid-flight, sending him sprawling onto the ground. He flipped up, but was then tackled over and pinned with his arms underneath him. He jerked his eyes up to his attacker and saw his brother sitting on top of him, and then Dean put his arm over Sam's mouth. Still wild from hunger, Sam opened his jaws wide with the intention of crushing Dean's radius. _Stop. Dean._ Those thoughts barely flicked through his head in time, freezing him as his jaws began to press down on the skin.

Sam was still aware of the terrified man, his heart now pumping hard and wet in his chest. It was extremely tempting to Sam, so he pressed his tongue against Dean's arm and closed his lips, allowing the taste of Dean to take over his thoughts. "I guess that making out with some part of me is going to be a habit, huh Sammy?" His brothers voice was strained, obviously a result of fighting with his brother to prevent a murder.

Dean whipped his head back towards the man who was frozen where he had been when Sam attacked. His eyes were wide, and Dean could tell that he didn't know whether to call for help or help the guy who had saved him with the crazy person, who was now sucking on the rescue guy's arm.

"Next time you want to talk to someone who turned their music up too loud? Don't." Dean spat at the guy, but he was still too stunned to respond. Dean grabbed a pebble from the ground and chucked it left-handed, but still managed to whack the guy's forehead. His hand shot to his forehead and he glared at Dean. "Dude, if you ever plan on getting yourself killed again, do what you just did." The guy looked at Dean like he was crazy. "Don't try to get into contact with a dude who is clearly ignoring you for a reason. If he doesn't know you, it's probably because he doesn't want attention, or because of something like this!" Dean shouted at the guy, who finally got the message and ran off.

A crowd had gathered, and it was making Dean really nervous; his brother was sucking on his arm to distract himself from the myriad of tantalizing stimuli that were trying to bombard him at that moment. "Everyone, get inside, right now!" When no one moved, Dean pulled out his gun. "I just want my food, and to leave, but I can't get up unless everyone is gone. So move, now!" All who were staring saw the gun that Dean was branding, and sprinted towards the building.

Dean got off of the ground and pulled Sam up with him once they were alone in the parking lot. "I'm going to grab the grub, then let's go." Sam nodded weakly, his head reeling from the second instinct assault that day. He locked himself in the car and turned down the music as Dean walked back towards the restaurant.

Dean stepped in the door and everyone in there flinched and pushed together against the far wall. "Oh, for crying out loud! Someone just get my order, it's the biggest one in the last five minutes!" Dean shouted as he slipped the gun back into his waistband. One of the cashiers sprinted behind the counter and came back with four bags of food, all of them linked in some way to signal that they were together. "H-here you are s-s-sir."

Dean pulled out his wallet and slapped down a wad of bills that would more-than cover it. "I-it's on the h-house." The man said, stepping back a bit. Dean huffed and left the money there.

"I wasn't actually going to use the gun!" He said, addressing the entire building. "I hope that you pot-heads all learned a lesson here, though! When a guy is pinning down a crazy dude, who is practically swallowing the guy's arm, and he tells you to get inside? LISTEN TO HIM! Don't just stand there and wait for him to get violent. If it ever happens again, he probably will shoot!" Dean huffed again and strode from the building, leaving around fifteen shell-shocked people in his wake.

Sam heard a knock on the driver's-side window, but he didn't look for who it was. He extended his mind, and felt his brother's presence, so he unlocked the doors and relaxed against the seat. AS his brother opened the door, the smell of five double bacon cheese-burgers, rare, tackled his nose. He lunged at the bags, leaving only one for Dean, and ripped into them, swallowing them nearly whole. It was nowhere as good as the man earlier had smelled, but it was as close to a wonderful meal that Sam could imagine.

Ten minutes later, the floor of the passenger side was littered with garbage. Sam lifted it all at once and stuffed it into the bags that the food came in. He sat silent for a few seconds, and then turned towards Dean. "I'm sorry, Dean. For almost biting you." Dean glanced at his brother, and shrugged nonchalantly. "It's no biggy, Sam. I'm going to do that whenever you lose it though, so if you really don't want me to become a werewolf, I suggest that you keep your teeth under lock and key." Sam snickered as he realized the normal context that the lock-and-key phrase was used under. "Dean, how can you be making jokes about this?" He asked, but he was still smiling at his brother's ability to stay in character. "I mean, me almost killing someone, and then nearly biting through your arm? That's not normally a joking matter."

"Since when have we ever been normal, psychic pup?" Dean looked away from the road to stare at Sam, fully. Sam shook his head at the new name, but his smile remained. "Sam, I can make jokes because it is not a big deal. If you had actually killed the guy, then it would have been big. If you want to bite me, though, I'll let you, so I figure that if it happens while defending some jack-ass, the end result is the same, right?"

Sam was thinking of a response when sirens and lights began screaming behind them. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" Dean cried, turning briefly to look behind them. He couldn't let the police get them; not with how Sammy was at the moment. He turned to look at Sam, and saw the same stark terror on his face.

Dean smashed the pedal to the floor, and the car jerked forward. Sam turned to look at Dean, but knew exactly why he was doing this. Sam needed to help in some way, so he let himself focus and began expanding his reach. He was feeling the surrounding area, ready to alert Dean to anything that could hinder them. "They've got back-up coming from that turn." Sam said, pointing ahead to a semi-busy intersection. "Oh, crap. We're so screwed."

Then the first bullet pinged off of the frame of the Impala. "They're shooting my baby!" Dean shouted, jerking the wheel into a sharp left turn. Sam pushed against the broad side of the car, helping keep their speed without flipping over. Sam extended his reach back towards the police, and felt them aiming their guns again. As each one fired, Sam pushed the bullets away from the Impala, causing every single one to hit at least a foot wide of any part of the car.

So distracted was Sam, that he couldn't warn Dean of the police cruiser that was racing towards them from beyond a turn blocked by trees. Dean shot through the intersection, but the police car was just on time, glancing the back of the Impala enough to send them off course without hurting either car much. Dean struggled to get control back, but they were headed towards a ditch. "Sammy!" he shouted as they flew off the road down to the forest four feet below.

Sam managed to land them on their wheels, but they were going too fast to stop. When they hit a tree it was all that he could do to prevent the full force from crushing the Impala beyond repair. Dean smashed through the windshield, but Sam managed to push him onto a course towards the ground, rather than a tree. Sam was buckled in, but his face smashed against the dashboard, thanks to his massive height.

The cruisers screeched to sudden stops at the edge of the road, police unloading and surrounding the entire area. Over ten of them jumped down, guns drawn, and approached the remarkably un-smashed car. Five men sprinted out into the forest towards the man lying on the ground, while the others cautiously opened the passenger door and caught the unconscious man that fell out. His nose was bleeding profusely, but he began to stir as they lay him on the ground.

One of them pulled out a flashlight and opened an eye, jumping back at the startling sight of his icy eyes, ringed in black, with the vertical cat's-pupil. The man slowly opened his eyes and they slid over the police officers with guns trained on him, not really seeing them.

Sam opened his eyes, but all he could see were blurry shapes moving in front of him. His nose was absolutely blocked from the blood streaming from it, and there was a roaring in his ears from his impact with the dashboard. His tongue felt swollen in his mouth, but not to the point of suffocation. He sensed the intentions of the moving shapes in front of him; they wanted to take him to jail. He ignored them and felt around his head, checking for any signs of concussion. He extended his mind towards his brother, who he found struggling against the cops. _Dean, calm down. I'm okay._ He felt his brother cease movement immediately, relaxing as Sam's voice penetrated his skull. _We're going to get out of this, Sammy. I swear._ He replied, knowing that Sam was still listening.

Sam turned his thoughts away from Dean, knowing that his brother was okay. The police grabbed his unresisting body and hauled him towards one of the cruisers after slapping some cuffs onto his wrists. _Can't let them find the stash in the trunk…_ he thought, reaching back towards it with his mind. Sam grabbed hold of one of the miniature flamethrowers that was stored in their trunk, and positioned it against the latch. He ignited it, melting the latch into a permanent lock. He would break it when they got out, but until then, the false bottom of the Impala's trunk was nothing but a bottom.

Sam fell asleep against the roar in his ears, after being crammed into the back of a separate car from Dean, and blacked out the entire way to the station.

**So, drop a review and tell me what you think of the second chapter. I'm planning on all of these chaps being pretty long, 'cause that's the way uh-huh uh-huh I like it uh-huh uh-huh!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, so this chapter is freaking long! I just couldn't find a good place to end the chapter, so it covers practically all of AHBL, the entire season finale of season 2. Please drop a review and let me know what you thought!**

**Chapter 3**

**My Brother's Keeper**

Sam felt himself thrown down on a rough cot, and he vaguely heard the sound of heavy iron doors being slid shut and locked. He had let himself be stripped and searched, losing a gun and three knives. His nose had been reset on the way, and he had thick tissues blocking his sense of smell, for which he was extremely grateful. His head was pounding, and he still had a light roaring in his ears, so he was unable to tell if anyone was in the cell with him.

He did, however, hear the heavy slamming of doors exactly three cells down, and knew that was where they were holding Dean. Sam allowed himself to relax as he scanned the room with his mind. He found a bed above him, with a heavy and large weight on top of it; his room-mate.

After close to half an hour, Sam's head had stopped throbbing, and he could hear all the way to the end of the corridor. He was purposely focusing his mind outside of the cell, so that he wouldn't catch the heartbeat of the man inside with him. That changed, once Sam felt strong enough to leave his body; he had been wanting to every since it began to weigh him down with pain.

He punched the bed above him, shoving telekinesis into the blow, forcing the sleeping brute into consciousness. "What the-" He shouted before jumping down to the floor. He reached into the bed and grabbed the supposedly-sleeping cell-mate, and took one look into his startling blue eyes.

Sam threw his mind into the brute, forcing it between their eyes. The man's mind was pushed down into his subconscious, into a state of dreaming until Sam released him. Sam stumbled as he grew accustomed to the unfamiliar weight of another body, and the massive power lurking behind bulging arms and legs. He then put his body down onto the cot, tucking arms and legs in to avoid any chance of injury. Sam could feel his body lying in an empty stasis, and he was already anxious to return.

He turned to the doors of the cell, and began to pound and scream for all he was worth. "Help! Help me, it's a snake! A water moccasin is coming from the toilet! Help!" Sam felt his throat grow raspy as the deep baritone shouted his lungs out. He jumped back as he heard keys jangling and fumbling with the lock on the heavy door. The guard jumped in and tackled him, shoving him to the ground and pinning him.

The guard pummeled him with weak fists until he took the time to look at the brutish face. He gasped as he took in icy blue eyes ringed in black and vertical slits for pupils. He felt as though he had been sedated, as he slipped into the darker regions of sleep in his mind.

As Sam left his jail buddy, he pinned the man's mind deep within his subconscious, so that he would remain asleep until Sam unlocked him; that would happen after Sam and Dean were long gone.

Sam walked in his wobbly new body towards the cell that he knew housed Dean. He could hear scraping and the soft impact of fists on flesh, and quickly opened the cell door. He flung it open to find Dean pummeling a guy that was larger than Sam's buddy, and the brute was quickly thrown onto the toilet and left alone as Dean turned towards Sam. "Dean, let's get out of here." Dean started at the words coming from the guard's mouth. Sam took out a flashlight and shined it at his eyes, causing Dean to gasp as he took in the familiar werewolf-blue. "Sam? You're…possessing the guy?" Sam nodded solemnly, but turned to walk away before they could be caught or questioned.

Sam returned to his cell showed Dean his body. "You need to carry me; this fat lard can't even carry himself for very long." The guard's voice was tinged with disdain, which Dean could easily tell came from Sam. Dean moved in and grabbed Sam's limp form in a fireman's carry, walking towards the cell door. After locking and closing the heavy iron, Sam extended his mind towards the sleeping brute and released him, causing a low groan to escape the waking inmate.

Sam pulled out the gun from the holster at his side and pinned it against Dean's back. Dean didn't protest; they both knew that it was necessary for them to get out. Whenever someone would ask what Sam was doing, he would reply, "Taking this one to the infirmary. Had to get his bulky brother here to help out."

On the way out, they stopped at the recording room, and Sam deleted all evidence that they had ever been in the town. He destroyed their records and tore apart pictures of the Impala's plates. After feeling certain that there was nothing left to track them by, they left to find their confiscated weapons.

Eventually they made it to the garage with the police cruisers. Sam pushed the unlock button on the key in his pocket, and saw the lights of one of the white cars flash. The two moved towards the car and slid in, Sam driving while Dean hid with Sam's body in the back. As Sam drove, he heard Dean talking to himself about police and bad timing, and what he would do if his Impala were hurt.

Sam drove into the impound yard, and immediately caught sight of the Impala. It had been towed, and probably received more damage from the journey here than it had when it crashed. When it had crashed, the front of the car was just slightly crunched in, thanks to Sam's lessening of impact. Now, however, it had dings and scratches all along the sides, and the bottom of the back fender had been scratched along the road the entire way here. Dean would freak.

Sam went to the yard-master and gave him the guard's badge. "I need to take the '67 Impala for routine check. We arrested the owners a short while back and we need to take it in for inspection for illegal substances." The man seemed used to the routine, handing Sam the keys to the car and telling him how to get out of the impound yard.

Dean carried Sam's body back to the Impala and set him in the back seat. "Dean, be ready to catch this officer and set him down on the ground. Be careful, he's heavy. And make sure that I can't smell him, or I will kill him. You'll have to move fast." Sam then leaned over his body and opened its eyes, staring into their empty depths. He pushed himself into his own body, and then threw the police officer out before his senses could return. He had ensured that the man wouldn't wake until Sam allowed it, so he had no fear of being caught in the impound yard.

Dean slammed the door shut as he saw Sam start to stir, dragging the limp officer away to his car. After shoving him back in and locking the doors, Dean sprinted back to the Impala, swearing about the damages the entire way.

Sliding into the driver's seat, he looked at his brother in the rear-view mirror. "Nice job, Sammy. Can't say that I'm happy about possessions, but it worked and no one got hurt, so I won't complain. You okay back there?" he asked when he saw Sam's eyes pinched shut, hands rubbing circles into his temples. Sam nodded weakly, and said, "My head just hurts. I think that it's because I was either surfing around the spirit web, or because of smacking my face into the dashboard." Sam maneuvered himself into the front seat, focusing on pushing the pain to the back of his mind.

"So, are we heading to Bobby's, or are we skipping town entirely?" Sam asked, looking to Dean for his answer. "I think that we should go back to Bobby's, but not for very long. The cops will definitely be on the lookout for us, even if they don't remember who they're looking for. Besides, despite how amazing I look in orange jumpsuits, I really want to change." Sam laughed as Dean sped up marginally, heading towards Bobby's house. Before they arrived, Sam remembered to fix the latch that he had melted in the trunk, restoring the false bottom to its proper state.

Bobby was standing outside on the porch when he heard the rumble of the Impala. He watched as Dean got out of the car and moved over to his brother's side to let him out. Sam was clutching Dean's wrist like it was a lifeline; for Bobby, it probably was. As the boys approached, he saw Sam shift his hold in Dean's wrist, and they stopped in front of the older hunter. Sam inhaled deeply, staring at Bobby as he resisted the urge to bite and infect him.

He exhaled and said, "I'm okay." And then the three of them turned to go inside. Dean kept a careful eye on his brother, watching as Sam alternated between letting his eyes wander, and piercing Bobby's back with his gaze. Dean twisted his fingers to poke Sam's hand, and then asked his silent question. _What's up with the death glare at Bobby's back, man?_

_Sorry, it's just distracting. I may not want to kill him, but it's still an annoying buzz in my mind, like a bug that won't leave you alone._ Dean was still somewhat surprised at his brother's ability to communicate without words, but he figured that he had better get used to it; Sammy was always surprising him.

"I really need to sleep, Dean." Sam said suddenly, turning to look at his brother. Dean nodded and the two left for the room that was always reserved for them. Ever since they became teenagers, there had been two beds in the room, but they still stayed in the same room. Sam left to brush his teeth while Dean changed into sweat pants, and then left to brush his teeth while Sam changed.

Dean returned to find Sam sitting straight up in his bed, eyes tired but wide. "Sammy?" he asked, crushing his eyebrows together. _What's up?_ He added silently, wondering if his brother could always hear him. "I can't stop thinking about blood, Dean. I may not want to kill Bobby, but I know that his would taste pretty good, and I keep remembering how that man in the parking lot smelled. I really just want to bust out the front door and eat." Dean could see the pain in Sam's eyes as he confessed, and his heart went out to his brother. "You want to sleep in my bed? Focus on my pulse instead of imaginary food ones?" Dean dropped into his bed and moved towards the wall at Sam's nod, making space for the larger brother.

Sam lay down quickly, striking out and grabbing Dean's arm. He could feel his heartbeat throbbing strongly through his arm, giving Sam something else to focus on besides hunting. Dean began humming lightly, just like he used to when Sam was a kid and couldn't sleep. Sam focused on Dean's voice and let his thoughts stretch out towards his brother as well. He let Dean's imagination swamp his mind, taking away any thoughts of hunting and blood. Sam slipped into a deep sleep at the same time as Dean did, their minds riding the same wavelength.

****

Dean awoke expecting to feel his brother's body heat next to him, but didn't. He shot straight up, now wide awake, but he couldn't see any sign Sam. His duffel bag was still where it had been left the day before, the previous day's clothes still sitting on the floor by his bed. Dean sprinted through the house to Bobby's room, waking him with the ruckus. "Bobby, Sam's gone!"

The two men scoured the house for any sign that Sam had left, but all of the doors were locked from the inside, the windows still shut and latched. Of course, with Sam's psychic, relocking a door from the outside would be no problem. Dean and Bobby made several rounds around the house, looking for any sign of Sam, but they found no footprints in the soft ground. Sam had just vanished.

****

Sam woke up on something very hard and cold, and he could not feel, hear, or smell Dean anywhere nearby. He shot up, immediately wide awake, and took in his surroundings. He was in a near pitch black room that had a small crack of light, presumably from a door. Sam pushed against the wall above the light, but it would not budge. Sam stepped back and focused his mind on the door, searching it for a knob, or any weak points. Finding nothing, he sent a powerful telekinetic blast at the center of the door, splintering it and shattering a railing of a wraparound porch.

Sam walked outside and immediately sent out his mind, feeling for any other living things. He found four other humans, and what felt like dozens of separate presences in the surrounding forest. He focused in on one, and felt the dark soul of a demon.

Sam turned and walked, hoping to find the humans…And not kill them. He jumped up onto another porch and heard a twig crack from beyond the porch, and he pressed himself up against the side wall. He smelled human, causing his teeth to taper into points, his nails growing out into claws. This human could be dangerous. He was so busy thinking that he nearly missed it when the man came from around the corner.

Sam pounced, landing on top of Andrew Gallagher. The instant he saw his face, Sam jumped away ten feet, throwing Andy another ten in the opposite direction. "Sam!" He cried as he slid, stopping in a small patch of hardening mud. Sam clutched his head, fighting the urge to rush forward and rip Andy's heart out. _Dean! Think of Dean, only of Dean! Dean, Dean, Dean! I need Dean! Stop. What would Dean do if he saw you now? If you kill Andy, then he will be disappointed. He will demand that you change him, and he will suffer through it all with you. _Sam managed to focus on those thoughts long enough to forget about Andy, at least for now. _I can't do that to Dean…I won't._

Andy watched as Sam straightened up, gasping as his ice-blue eyes connected with his own. "Sam…What happened to you?" he asked, staying absolutely still. He knew that something was wrong with Sam; he was dangerous. Sam forced himself to calm down, focusing on his own heartbeat. He willed it to slow to a normal rate. His teeth became dull again, dulling to average human teeth. His claws retracted into fingernails, losing their deadly sharpness.

"I'm…I'm okay…Andy. For now, just…don't come to close to me…okay?" Sam barely choked this out, causing him to need to breathe. He sucked in air, nearly choking it back out when Andy's scent flooded into him, giving him a small taste of what he was missing. _Dean! Think of Dean!_ Sam managed to prevent his claws from coming out by imagining Dean's face as he watched Sam kill Andy; it nearly made him throw up right there.

Andy stayed a good ten feet away from Sam as they walked, stealing concerned and curious glances in Sam's direction. "So…What happened? Why are your eyes…like that?" Andy asked, breaking the awkward silence that had descended in the dead town. "I am a werewolf. Well, sort of." Sam didn't give any details beyond that, but Andy couldn't reign in his curiosity. "Sort of? How did that happen? Did you get bitten? Is it genetic? Why only sort-"

"Andy! Did you ever hear the phrase 'curiosity killed the cat'? Whenever you breathe and talk, you shoot a massive blast of your scent over to me, and I am fighting myself for your life here! So just-" Sam cut himself off when he heard a scream. He turned his head in that direction, tracing the echoes of the scream until he could pinpoint where it came from. Sam rocketed off in that direction, chasing the phantom shout.

He arrived at a heavy iron door with a padlock. There was a woman screaming inside. Sam exerted a small force on the lock and shattered it, pulling the door open simultaneously. Ava stumbled out and blinked into the sunlight. "Sam?" she recognized him immediately, running forward to tackle him in a big hug. "Sam!" she squealed, oblivious to his clenched fist, claws digging into his hands and causing them to breathe. "Uh…Lady, get away from him. He's trying not to kill you." Andy said, motioning for Ava to get away.

Ava looked up at Sam's straining face and jumped back. "Sam? Are…Are you okay?"

"Don't talk." Andy walked over to her and began whispering into Ava's ear, telling her everything that was going on with Sam, and why he was struggling so much. "Oh…I'm so sorry! I didn't know, I-

"Shut up!" Andy shouted, closing Ava's mouth. Sam was sucking in deep calming breaths, trying to ignore the double scents that were assaulting his nose, causing his mouth to water and his claws to dig deep into his flesh. Sam bit down on his tongue, hard enough to draw blood. The coppery taste was disgusting to Sam's own mouth; bad enough to distract him from the tantalizing aroma that drifted off of the humans in front of him. His claws retracted almost immediately, his teeth reverting to prevent any more damage to his mouth.

He kept the image of Dean watching him kill firmly in his head, Dean's disgusting face keeping him down enough to prevent another exhibition of hunger. The three of them walked in relative quiet through the deserted city, pausing to look inside every other window. Sam stretched out his mind and located the other two humans, and then changed their direction to run into them.

Their paths crossed after two minutes of walking, meeting them in front of yet another abandoned store. The two introduced themselves as Jake and Lily, and Sam found the girl quite tempting. Her attitude was really grating on him; he could understand why she was so upset, after all she killed people as her power, but she was looking better and better after every word.

Andy noticed this, and decided to speak up. "Hey, I think that you need to stop talking. Right now." Lily looked at him and, instead, she got louder. "Well, who died and made you the boss?! Huh? Last time I checked, we're all out here alone, and as far as we know, we're all going to die!"

"You're going to die if you don't shut up! I'm dead serious!" Andy shouted, pointing to Sam as he did so. She looked at him and took in his trembling form, claws grasping at his hair. "What's his problem?" Jake asked callously, not really caring too much.

"He's trying not to kill you! Stop talking, because it sends your scent his way, and based on the three-inch nails, he's right about to jump up and take a bite out of you!" Andy had a look of absolute seriousness on his face, and Lily believed him. Jake wasn't so quick to bite, however. "Yeah, right. He can't hurt me." Andy's head collapsed against his chest as Sam's shot up, knowing that they were probably going to be down a person pretty soon.

Sam surged forward, taking all four of the others by surprise by his speed. He punched Jake in the mouth, sending him crashing into a wall. He dashed forward again and lifted Jake by his throat, with one hand. Jake's hands tried to wrap around his wrist, but they kept hitting nothing, just stopping short of Sam's skin. "You have no idea how easy it would be to kill you; how much pleasure I would take in doing so. I have never tasted human flesh, but if you keep running your mouth, you're going to be my first meal." Sam was struggling not to rip into Jake's throat at that moment. He could see his carotid pulsing at a quickened pace, fear and adrenalin working his heart overtime.

Jake had a terrified look in his eyes as spots started dancing in front of his eyes; he knew that he was absolutely powerless next to Sam, despite his own ability. Sam dropped Jake to the ground, causing the soldier's knees to buckle from the lack of oxygen.

"Come on, we need to find weapons." He ordered, walking away from the small group. Ava and Andy chased after him, not wanting to be left behind. "Why? Who are we fighting?" Lily was still standing near the shop, not wanting to go anywhere with the psychotic person who had just told them that he would _enjoy_ killing them. "Not who, so much as what. We're fighting demons; at least twenty of them. A demon brought us here, and as far as I understand, we're soldiers. He wants us to fight in a war." Sam turned and stalked off again, hearing Lily jogging after them; now she was scared that he was loony on top of cannibalistic.

Jake had not followed them, and even though Sam didn't like the guy, he could not let him get hurt because he was ignorant. Sam followed his scent until he came to an old shop with the door open. He looked in and saw a blonde little girl standing in front of Jake, holding her hands up. _Demon!_ His instincts screamed, demanding that he destroy it. Sam however, did not want to reveal his greater powers to them, so he found an iron poker and swung it, wiping it through the demon's form. She vaporized, her smoke flooding out over Andy and Ava's heads to the forest beyond.

"That…Was a demon." Sam said before moving further into the shop. "Look around for iron, silver, salt…Anything that we can use as a weapon."

"Salt is a weapon?" Lily asked, her voice heavy with sarcasm. Sam didn't have too much patience with either of the newer people though, so he kept it short. "Brave new world, I know." He then turned to search through a chest, finding a rusty iron knife.

The five of them were digging through a random abandoned house, when they heard Andy shouting to them. "Hey guys!" He came into the room and held up two jute-fiber sacks. "Salt!" he announced proudly, a smile lighting up his face for being useful. "Great job, Andy. Now we all need to…" he looked around to grab everyone's attention, but stopped when he realized that they were not five, but four.

Lily was gone. "Where's Lily?"

The four of them went outside and began calling for her, when Ava screamed. The other two rushed to her side while Sam cast out with his mind, searching for any lurking demons that could cause problems; they were all over the forest, but none were coming towards them. Sam slowly walked towards the others, careful to keep his movements under tight control. He may have been having an easier time of it, but he still wanted to kill and eat each and every one of them.

Lily was hanging from the windmill, dead as the town they were in. Ava turned and walked towards Sam, throwing her arms around him once again. Sam's muscles bunched against his instincts to tear her heart out as her scent assaulted him again, just as strong as before. There was something different about it though, and it only added to her allure. "Andy…" Sam gasped out, pushing Ava hard away from him. He jumped back a good ten feet, removing himself from the immediate vicinity of the aroma.

Sam spun away and stalked back towards the house that they were resting in, eager to start the protection. _Man, I wish that Dean were here._ "What I would give for a working cell phone!" He exclaimed out loud, frustrated that he couldn't talk to Dean. He had been so caught up in his thoughts that Andy's voice from just a few feet behind him caused him to jump and land in a defensive crouch. "You want to call your brother, right? You might not need one." He started, ignoring Sam's position. "I've never tried it long distance before, but do you have anything of his? Or something that he's touched?" Andy moved a little closer, trusting Sam not to kill him before he helped out.

Sam dug around in his pockets and pulled out a receipt, handing it to Andy. "Will this work?"

"Yeah." After mocking Dean's choice of signature, he closed his eyes and concentrated. Sam focused in on his thoughts, and could feel him casting out farther than Sam had ever tried to go. He was using Dean's fingerprints on the receipt as a homing beacon, tracing them back to their owner. Sam felt Andy push an image of the bell, that they had seen earlier, into Dean's head. He sent a repeat image, this time with Sam's face in the foreground.

Andy gasped as he let the contact break, nearly dropping to his knees. Sam caught him and managed to not think about how easy of a meal he would be just then. The two of them went after Jake and Ava towards the house so that Sam could help with and oversee the protection.

****

Dean was furious. They had discovered Sulfur in Bobby's house, at the edge of their bed and near the front door. Dean had lost his little brother to demons, and he had no clue if he was okay. Or if he was eating other people right now. Dean desperately hoped that Sam was able to hold out and not kill someone.

He and Bobby had just returned from the ruins of the Roadhouse, and Dean felt like punching something. Sam was gone, and the only guy who could have helped find him had died with the secret; not to mention the major news that he had said was apocalyptic big. Bobby had just set down the map to figure out their next move, when a splitting migraine attacked Dean's head. He bent over to rest his forehead on the hood of the car, but it didn't help. "Dean? You okay, son?" The headache faded as suddenly as it had come, and Dean rose up and answered. "Yeah, it was just a headache."

And then it struck again. This time, however, it came with an image: Dean saw a bell with an engraving on it of a large oak tree. More important though, was Sammy's face that danced in his view over the bell. Dean's headache faded along with the image, and he found himself half-laying on the hood of the Impala. "Well, that was about as fun as getting kicked in the jewels." Dean said gruffly as he righted himself. "What is it?" Bobby asked, concern for the oldest Winchester bleeding through the question. "I dunno. I saw a bell, and then Sam's face."

"What kind of bell?" Bobby asked after a short pause.

"Like, a really big bell, with a big engraving on it."

"Like a tree? An oak tree?" Dean knew that Bobby knew something now; that is exactly what he had seen. "Yeah…I think so. Why, you know something?" he asked, hoping that Bobby did.

"I know where Sam is."

****

Sam opened his eyes quickly after them shutting. He jerked his head up when he smelled something horrid, and turned to meet evil yellow eyes. "Jake, behind you!" He shouts, hoping to warn him in time. Jake ignores him, staring at Andy and Ava as though Sam didn't exist. "Oh, he can't hear you sport." The yellow-eyed demon said cockily.

"I'm dreaming." Sam stated. He could feel the difference between real life and this, even if it was the most realistic dream he had ever had. "Oh, he always was quick on the uptake! Let's take a walk, my boy." The demon turned around and walked off, expecting Sam to follow. As Sam stood to chase after him, he noticed that he could not smell Jake, Ava or Andy. He couldn't hear their hearts either, and a broad smile cracked his face. He sprinted off after Yellow-eyes in excitement at not being a werewolf.

He lost his excitement the second the demon began to talk about the war. Sam felt his anger coming on as he spoke of Sam being his favorite, and how he needed Sam to kill the others so that he would win and be the best. His claws grew out and his teeth sharpened when the demon began talking about Jessica, and his mom. He could feel the desire burning within him, the urge to kill and rip and maim. The demon would taste horrible, but it would be well worth it afterwards, when he was dead.

"It's always been about…you, Sammy." The demon said, pulling Sam away from his rage-induced haze. "What?" He asked, stunned at the look the demon was giving him; almost respectful, caring. "Alright, you've caught me in a charitable mood. I'll show you." He then snapped his fingers, rocketing them away from Cold Oak. Sam opened his eyes, and found himself in a nursery, with a dark silhouette standing above a baby. _That's me!_ He thought, realizing it as the yellow-eyed demon spoke of what was happening.

Sam watched as the demon cut his wrist, dripping blood into baby-Sam's mouth. It caused his stomach to flip around in circles. "I have…demon blood in me?" _That would explain my possession when I first changed!_ He realized. He now had a reason for when he made it back to Dean and Bobby. Sam had lost interest in the flashback, even though his mother was being dragged up the ceiling. "You really don't need to see this part." The demon said, and then he clicked his fingers.

"Sam, wake up!" Sam lashed out, catching Jake in the chest. He had struck hard enough in his surprise that it sent Jake crashing into a table. "Sorry." He muttered, turning to Andy. "What's going on?"

"Ava's missing."

Sam and Jake had gone out to search for Ava, leaving Andy within the protection of the salt. Sam and Jake both had weapons that could be used against demons, and they both had powers that would be useful, so they were confident that they would be okay alone.

After two minutes of searching, Sam felt something tickling his insides, calling him back towards the protected house. He was around ten steps away when Ava's blood-curdling scream sounded, causing Sam to surge forward and smash through the door.

Sam froze as the scent of fresh and free blood shattered his mind, his instincts taking over control of any thought. Sam lunged towards Andy's body, not even realizing what he was doing. He smashed his claws into Andy's chest, tearing open his heart cavity. He ripped off the breast-plate, and then plunged his hands beneath the heart. He pulled up and ripped the arteries, cutting it free from Andy's body.

Ava was watching the most disgusting thing she had ever seen, and she had just watched a demon tear someone's insides apart. She stared in horror as Sam tackled Andy's dead body, plunging his hands in to tear out the heart. Ava usually had a very strong stomach, but she was getting ready to hurl when Sam took the first bite. She was going to have nightmares about this for a while; it was far worse seeing a good person eating someone else's heart than watching a cruel demon shred that same person's guts. Ava pressed her hands to her head, focusing on the demon that she had picked out for her special services this time, the black smoke already pouring through the unprotected window towards the unsuspecting werewolf.

Sam felt something calling outside of the house. He looked up from his meal towards a girl, pressing her hands to her head. He turned towards a thick black smoke that was solidifying into a small blond girl. He growled and roared at it, his icy eyes hardening in hate; it was trying to steal his meal! The demon flashed towards him, but he flung his hand out before him, freezing the demon in mid-stride. Sam crushed his hand into a fist, and the demon began to smoke. Fire licked at her hair and quickly spread to the rest of her body. She screamed as the fire consumed her, eating away at the demon's soul.

Sam turned from the last puff of smoke as the demon died to the girl who had summoned it; Sam could sense it. She had blood dripping from her nose and she had collapsed against a chair, staring at the floor. Sam was brought back to the heart in his hand, all threats currently put down; he tore into the soft flesh and swallowed noisily, all thoughts of anything remotely sane smashed down into murmurs.

Jake had heard the scream and was running. He burst through the open door of the house and froze at the sight that he came to; Ava was sitting in a chair with a bloody nose, while Sam knelt above a dead Andy, with an unidentifiable piece of flesh in his hand. Jake assumed it was Andy's heart, based on the hole that gaped in his chest. Blood covered Sam's face and hands and leaked down his shirt; Jake could tell that the sane Sam was no longer there.

Jake had been visited by Azazel, though, and he knew what he had to do. He walked over to an unconscious Ava and grabbed the sides of her head. He then twisted sharply, snapping her neck.

Jake turned towards Sam, who had heard the delicious crunch that meant another dead body; another meal. Sam looked up from the last chunk of heart to see Jake striding towards him. He growled menacingly, but Jake continued to advance. Sam twitched his hand and watched in satisfaction as Jake was hurled through the walls and crashed into the fence outside. He shoved the last piece of heart into his mouth before jumping out to follow the soon-dead soldier.

Sam got a running start and jumped at Jake, but he had been ready for Sam. He kicked his foot straight up, catching Sam in the stomach and launching him into the air. Sam gasped for breath as he soared higher than fifteen feet into the air, but then decided that he didn't need it; at least not yet. Sam twisted and turned in mid-air until he was facing Jake again. Jake saw Sam aiming for him, his fists outstretched like a falling Superman. He jumped out of the way just as Sam came crashing to Earth.

Sam collided with the spot that Jake had been previously. He missed, but he had sent a shockwave out on impact that hadn't. Jake had been tossed through another part of the fence, at least twenty feet. He wanted to eat, and Jake was standing in his way of that; Jake would die.

Jake managed to get a single good punch in, dislocating Sam's left shoulder with the force. Sam hand spun into a roundhouse kick that had sent Jake flying into the ground after splintering yet another section of the fence. Sam lunged towards Jake and straddled his chest, pinning his unmoving arms beneath him. Sam tore open Jakes shirt, and began to cut into his chest with his razor-sharp claws. Jake's scent was overwhelming Sam's senses, and he nearly missed the unmistakable call of his brother.

"Sam!" Dean called, hoping that Sam could hear him from wherever he was. Sam looked down at the nail that was almost an inch deep into the soldier's chest, and immediately began to feel the guilt. His actions with Andy came flooding back as well, nearly shattering him with the weight of what he had done. Sam stood quickly and jumped away from Jake, afraid that he would finish killing and eating the man, if he didn't stop right then.

He could see his brother in the distance, and he huffed a sigh of both relief and misery. Sam couldn't wait to see his brother again; to smell him and hear the thumping of his heart. He was also dreading the reunion, seeing as his shirt was soaked with the evidence of his actions.

Sam heard a light rustling behind him, but he thought nothing of it; probably just Jake shifting in his unconscious stupor. Sam had felt the return of intelligence the moment he heard Dean's voice. He was now only about fifty feet from his brother and Bobby.

Dean suddenly got a worried look on his face and called out for him. "Sammy, look out!" And then started running. Sam heard the crash of feet behind him, but before he could turn, he felt a searing pain in his mid-back. He thrust backwards with an intensely focused blast of telekinesis, and he felt it connect with something extremely soft. His back was now burning and throbbing, however, and he lost track of all else except for his brother. Dean had reached him, and Sam kept his face and scent in his mind as he drifted off into the waiting darkness.

Dean watched and screamed as the black guy shoved a knife into the middle of Sammy's back. Sam's eyes widened and then flashed briefly, and Dean heard a wet _thump_ followed by splashing. He ignored it though, as he hurled himself at his brother, catching him just before he collapsed to the ground. He put his hand to Sam's back, seeing how much blood was there, and nearly groaned; Sam had a gaping hole that was gushing blood and spinal fluid was draining out rapidly.

"No, Sammy, it's okay! Look, it's not even that bad! Sam, come on, just stay with me!" Dean was begging now, and he knew it. He would cry in front of millions of girls and men across the world, though, if it would save his brother. "No, come on Sammy. You can't leave me. You're going to be fine. You need to be. I need you to stick around and be my pain-in-the-ass brother!" Dean felt it when Sam fell against his chest, as limp as Madison had been when her heart was crushed. Dean wrapped his arms around his baby brother and took in the sight beyond them.

Jake was laying face-down in the mud, a gaping hole in his back where his heart should have been. The hole led all the way through to the ground, and blood was sprayed all over behind him. His heart had been blasted from his chest and liquefied, spattered all over the ground of the wretched town. Dean couldn't even find it in himself to take joy in the death of his brother's murderer. Clutching his brother's lifeless body even tighter, he cried out, "SAM!!!"

****

Dean sat in the chair, staring at his still-lifeless brother. He hadn't looked at the wound or seen Sammy's eyes in over a day, and he was losing his mind. He had shouted at and hit Bobby, making him leave. Dean was growing more and more confused and desperate by the minute. Sammy, his little brother who meant more than anything in the world, who Dean had offered his life to on several occasions, who had been Dean's one job in life, was now dead.

Dean was hurtling through the house and flying down the street in the Impala before he was even conscious of moving from Sam's side. Mere minutes after flying dangerously through the dirt roads, Dean arrived at a perfect crossroads. He jumped out of the seat and popped the trunk, pulling out a box of materials that they had stolen from the other crossroads summoning that they had dealt with in the past. Dean slipped one of his many drivers' licenses into the box and then closed it. He dug a deep enough hole in the exact center of the road to hide the box in, and then quickly covered it up.

Dean spun around slowly, impatiently waiting for the demon to show up and take him. "Well, well, well. Dean Winchester, I can't say that I'm surprised. You've pretty much gone bust, haven't you? I mean, first Daddy, and now little Sammy. Are you here for me to kill you, or do you want something else?" The demon was standing right behind him, and he spun to face her with rage on his face. He could not stand the woman in the skimpy black dress poking fun at him. "Bring Sammy back. You can have my soul in ten years, but bring my brother back." He growled at her, skipping any formalities that might have existed for any woman, even a demon.

"No." She said, turning away from him. He blanched, furious now.

"What? Why not?! That's the same deal that you give to everyone else!"

"You're not everyone else, Dean." She cooed, turning around to snake little circles around him.

"Fine. Five years. Give me five years, and then you can come and take my soul." He had already cut the deal in half, but she still shook her head. "One. At least one year with my brother."

"You're going to have to try harder than that, Deany. You're a pretty major article downstairs; everyone wants a piece. I will bring Sammy back, if I can take you now." She offered, her smile fading completely. Dean grimaced, but they both knew that in the end, he would take it. "At least let me say goodbye." His voice was barely more than a whisper as he tried for that one last deal.

The crossroads demon tapped her lips for a moment in deliberation, and then said, "I'm feeling generous tonight. I'll let you go back to your breathing brother and say goodbye, let him know how sorry you are for selling your soul for him at such a cheap price. I'm sure that he'll understand perfectly why he has to watch a Hound rip apart his brother, just after he himself had returned. You have fifteen minutes."

Dean ignored her twisted little rant and grabbed her head roughly. He pressed his lips to hers, sealing the deal, and then raced to his car. He could already hear the baying of the Hound in the distance, calling out for him. Dean made the trip in five minutes, shutting off the engine and racing into the house. He found Sam staring at his back in the mirror, a small scar the only thing left of the bloody hole that had been there before.

Dean strode up and hugged his brother tightly, crushing him to his chest. "Ah…Dean…can't…can't breathe." Sam gasped out, being crushed by Dean's massive hug. "Dean, are you alright?" Sam could smell terror on his brother, along with several other things that he hadn't learned to place yet. Dean remained silent for several seconds, before looking up to his little brother. "I'm so, so sorry, Sammy. I tried to protect you, but I couldn't. I couldn't stop him from killing you. I'm sorry." Dean went to hug Sam again, but not as hard. Sam was confused now, so he stretched out his mind and delved inside of Dean's head, catching everything that had just happened in the last eight minutes.

"Dean…" He muttered, trying to get his brother's attention.

"I know Sam, I made a Deal. I'm so sorry, but I couldn't let you die. I just couldn't do it, Sammy."

"Dean!" He shouted, pulling back from his brother. "Dean, I woke up exactly twelve minutes ago. You made the Deal nine minutes ago. You thought I was…Oh…Oh no. Dean, you idiot!" Sam was shaking at his brother's stupidity, fury at himself for not having woken up just a little bit sooner. "Dean, I'm a werewolf! A werewolf that can't die just by getting stabbed by _iron_. Dean, how could you forget all of the lessons that we were taught?! You can't kill a werewolf unless you burn it, chop its head off, or stab it through the _heart_ with _silver_! I got stabbed in the back with iron!" Sam was shouting at the top of his lungs, claws and teeth beginning to come out. Dean stared with blank eyes at his brother, and then realization hit him. "Oh, I'm going to kill that devious little slut! That whore is going to die!" Dean turned on his heels and stormed towards the front door, but was stopped cold by a loud, ominous barking sound. "Sammy…" He said just loud enough for Sam's sensitive ears to pick up.

The door shuddered as the Hell Hound tackled it, but it wouldn't give. Dean had retreated and grabbed onto Sam's shirt, clutching him tightly. Sam could sense the Hound, and there was only one of them; he would do everything in his power to stop it. He would not have a repeat of Madison, this time he could stop it.

The door exploded inward and Sam sensed rather than saw the Hell Hound barge into the house. Sam flung out his telekinesis as hard as he could, catching the invisible dog and smashing it against the wall. Sam shoved his mind towards the creature, and felt its consciousness connect with his own. And then he began to destroy it. Sam stretched his hand towards the dog, and then clenched his fist. A bright golden light shone from the wall as Sam extinguished the life of the evil dog, temporarily rescuing his brother. Sam released his hand as he felt the Hell Hound's consciousness slip away, its life ebbing and dissipating into the night.

"Did you…kill it?" Dean asked timidly, unsure if it was possible to kill the Rottweilers of Hell.

"Yeah, but we need to get to the crossroads demon, now." Sam burst out the front door and sprinted to the car, sliding into the passenger seat. He threw the driver's door open as Dean slid in, starting the car and flying down the road, all in the same two seconds.

Sam could hear more barking in the distance behind them as they tore through the old dirt roads. Dean skidded to a halt at the crossroads, and Sam flew out of the car before it had finished stopping. He threw his mind out and wrapped it around the box that Dean had buried, locking his focus on the summoning ingredients. He traced the ritual objects to the demon that they would summon, and latched onto it. The crossroads demon was resisting with all of its strength, but Sam would not be denied; he dragged it from its resting place and out into the open, slamming it to the ground.

"Well…if it…isn't little Sammy, back…from the dead."

"Shut your mouth." Sam growled as he clenched his fist tightly. Immense, bone-shattering pain tore through the demon's body as its jaw slammed shut, cutting off any screams beyond whimpers and moans. "Let Dean out of his deal. Now!" He commanded, grinding his fist together. The woman shook and trembled, the pain more than she had ever felt; even in Hell.

"Fine. I'll let him off the hook…but then you die, Sammy." She gasped out, speaking through the pain that shredded the dark soul within. "No I won't. I was alive when the Deal was made; it was a one-sided affair." Sam opened his fist, flipped his hand into a claw, and began pulling towards himself. The demon's body arched up, but remained pinned to the ground and Sam pulled and twisted, but held the demon within its host. "Let my brother go."

"I can't!" She cried, sobs forcing themselves out in reaction to the immense pain. "I don't…I don't have his deal!" Sam continued the torture as she screamed; repeating over and over that she did not hold Dean's deal. "Then who does?"

Dean had been watching the entire time, and a small pang of fear was brooding in his stomach as he watched his little brother torturing a demon without even touching it. He had known that Sam could kill, but torture? That's an entirely different ball game.

"Why…why should I tell you? If I tell you, you'll kill me. If I manage to get away, then that demon will definitely kill me; where's my cookie?" She asked, searching for one reason to tell Sam what he wanted to know. Sam's face curled up into a cruel smile as he spoke words that sent shivers down Dean's spine. "If you tell me willingly, I'll kill you quickly. For every five seconds that you don't tell me, however," Sam curled his hand inward, inciting another bout of screaming from the trapped demon. "I'll give you an entire minute of this."

The sound of screaming filled the air for less than ten seconds before the demon cried out, "Okay! I'll talk! I'll tell you anything! Just please kill me!"

"You'll tell me who and where the demon is?" Sam asked, his voice strained slightly from exerting himself on the crossroads demon. "Yes! I'll tell you! Please. Please, just stop!"

"Fine." Sam relaxed his hold on the demon, causing her body to collapse back to the Earth. She panted heavily for several seconds before turning to face Dean. "And you wanted to bring this back from the dead? He's worse than us!" Dean gave her a half-smile and said, "I doubt that. But somehow, as long as he's using it to torture you guys, and not some innocent human? I think I'd be okay with that."

The demon huffed and turned back to Sam. "Her name is Lilith. She holds all of the contracts, eventually. I handed your brother's over the minute he left, just so that this kind of crap couldn't happen."

"How do we find her?" Sam asked, struggling to keep his voice moderately calm.

"You can't. She's neck deep in Hell, and there's no way out with how deep she is." The crossroads demon rolled her head back to stare at the sky, obviously done with all that she would tell them. "Are you going to kill me, or what?"

"There has to be a way to get to Lilith, and make her release Dean!" Sam curled his hand slightly, letting the first tendrils of pain latch back onto her. "No! There isn't, you can't get to her! Not unless you go to Hell yourself! Please, no more! Just kill me, there's nothing that you can do!"

"Not quite true, my dear." Sam and Dean spun on their heels to face the newcomer. Sam started when he saw yellow-eyes facing them, his hands placed placating in front of him. Sam's nose started to burn even worse than before; the stronger the demon, the stronger its stench. Sam turned his focus on the new demon in front of them and began to reach out towards him. "Ah! Wait, my boy, I come with a peace offering. I can get you two things that you want: An extension on Dean's deal, and the demon that holds the contract."

"Don't listen to him, Sammy. Just fry him and let's get out of here! We can hunt down Lilith on our own." Dean murmured, grabbing his brother's shoulder.

"Actually, the slut over there is right; Lilith is too far down in the Pit for any summoning to get her out.

"Before we continue business, we haven't been properly introduced. I'm Azazel, so I would appreciate it if you would stop calling me yellow-eyes. Azazel is probably easier anyways."

Ignoring both demon and brother, he addressed the Deal that Azazel wanted to make. "What do you get in return? My soul? Both of our souls? Why would you help us hunt down a demon who's trapped in Hell?"

"Please, what do take me for? If I wanted your souls, you could just take them back when you kill Lilith! No, I want you to help me with a little something."

"Sam! Don't do it; deals with demons never end well!" Dean hissed, tightening his hold on Sam's shoulder. _Dean, whatever he's selling, it's cheaper than my soul. I can get you yours back, without giving mine up! It's a win-win situation!_ Sam didn't want Azazel to hear their argument. Dean thought his reply back, understanding Sam's game. _Sam, he's a demon. Demons always have ulterior motives!_

_Let's at least find out what he wants me to do. _Sam stopped listening in on Dean's head, cutting off the conversation. "What do I have to do?"

"Ah, that's my boy. All you need to do, is meet me in southern Wyoming. I have already marked the spot on the map that's in your car; you just have to drive there. I'll tell you the next part right after." Sam narrowed his eyes at the demon, waiting for more to come up. "That's it! You won't be performing any dark magic, no murdering at all! I just want you to open a little something for me; it will give you what you want, and I'll get what I want in return. It's a win-win situation, Sammy; three wins if you count Dean getting his soul back."

Growling erupted from behind them, and Sam spun and felt three Hell Hounds this time, crouched and waiting to attack his brother. "If you do it, we'll have to shake. It is just a formality, but it will stop the Hounds from tearing Dean apart. As I said, you'll get your extension, and then you're free to go find Lilith, once you get to Wyoming!"

Sam turned to Dean, expecting him to make some remark about how Sam was being an idiot, but found his brother staring at the Hounds. Unadulterated terror was marring Dean's usually-brave face, sealing Sam's decision. He turned back to Azazel and stuck out his hand. "Fine. I'll open whatever you want that's in Wyoming. Get rid of the Hounds." Azazel reached out and grasped his hand firmly, sealing the Deal. Sam felt something click, and he heard he growling stop, felt the Hell Hounds backing away. The demon winked at Sam and receded, walking backwards into the night. "See you soon, Sammy! Oh, and don't forget; you promised to kill that poor, devious little skank behind you."

Sam turned back to the crossroads demon, who was staring at Sam in bewilderment. "I'm in a much better mood now. Do you want Hell, or Death? I'll let you choose. I've got a quick question though. Do you know what happens when demons die?" Dean turned to look at his brother, the shock of the Hell Hounds wearing off. His brother's playful expression brought the shock right back. "Sammy, your mood swings are really starting to freak me out." The brother in question turned and sent a goofy grin in Dean's direction. "I'm just happy. I have a feeling that we're going to get Lilith, and get you out of your deal." He turned back to the crossroads demon, waiting for an answer.

"No. None of us know, because none of us have actually been killed until you came along, except for extremely rare circumstances."

"Well, I want to have a little experiment. I'm going to kill you painlessly, so you can talk while it's happening. Tell me if you see a Reaper coming at you." Sam then lifted his hand again, pressing it flat against the air. The demon began to glow as Sam closed his eyes; Dean recognized the glow as that of a demon being fried. The crossroads demon showed no pain though, laying on the ground relaxed. "Well?" Dean asked for his brother's sake, "Do you see anything?"

"No…I don't-" the demon gasped slightly, and then fell limp as the light within grew dark.

****

Dean stopped the car as they arrived at a set of railway tracks; the demon had circled this particular crossing with clear instructions to 'stop here'. "Alright, we're here; were is he?" Dean grumbled, pulling up the parking brake. He swung open the door and stepped out, feet crunching on the gravel. Sam followed suit, but much more quietly. He cast his mind out, and started as he felt a demonic presence rushing towards them. "He's here." He said, turning around.

The two boys stared at Azazel as he watched them, having arrived in the time it took them to turn. "Well, boys, it looks like it's time to reveal the rest of your task." The boys watched as the demon reached into his back pocket and pulled out the Colt. It had lost much of its importance ever since Sam became a werewolf and gained the ability to kill demons. "You need a key, to open a door."

"A door to what?" Sam snapped.

"All in good time, Sammy." Azazel handed the gun to Dean as he looked at the younger Winchester, stepping back and motioning for the boys to cross the railway. Sam still had questions that he wanted answered. "I'm assuming that these iron railways surround and protect whatever is in there, so why would we open whatever it is?"

"Because it will let you get Lilith. If you can kill Lilith, then all the deals that she holds at that moment will be released; including your brother's. Now go! Go and free that evil deal-holding demon, kill her, and free your brother!"

Sam and Dean turned and crossed the tracks, entering the protected field of the cemetery. The two walked silently and took in the massive number of graves that littered the ground; big ones, small ones, graves that could hold kings and others that could hold mice. "Sam," Dean spoke, breaking the silence that had descended at Azazel's last words. "Sam, obviously whatever this door is, it is going to let out something big. If it can get Lilith out of Hell, then it's probably a gate to the freakin' place! I really, really don't think that we should do this, bro."

"Dean, if we don't then the Deal's broken and the Hounds come after you again. I can't hold off more than one, maybe two at the most. I'm not letting you go to Hell, Dean. If releasing a few demons to get to Lilith is the only way to keep you out, then I'll do it."

"Sam, the Hell Hounds can't cross iron any more than demons can. We'll be safe in here, deal or no deal, at least until we can figure something else out. Please, Sam, just think!" Dean stopped moving to beg with his brother. Sam stopped and was about to snap something about not having time to think, but then he saw the expression that was so rare on Dean's face. "Dean…" Sam sighed and reached out, grasping at the earth. He pulled his hand up and tore the earth into a tall mound; perfect for sitting on. He gestured towards it and then moved to sit down. The desire to protect his older brother was overwhelming to Sam, making the desire to bite him even stronger than normal; if Dean was a werewolf, then he would be even harder to damage and kill.

"Sam, who did you kill?" Dean asked suddenly, figuring that if he could keep Sam's mind off of the Deal, then he could prolong releasing whatever was being kept in. He had seen the blood covering Sam's mouth and shirt, and had assumed the worst; that Sam had lost it and killed someone. He had replaced Sam's shirt and cleaned the blood off, so that when he awoke he would be clean. Making a Deal had been one of the first thoughts to cross his mind when wondering what he should do next.

"I…Dean…" Sam stared imploringly at his older brother, begging to not talk. His distraction had worked. "Sam, I'm not going to get mad at you. Aside from the dude who stabbed you, who did you kill?" His brother's downcast face nearly made him pull the question back, but he needed to keep Sam distracted; needed to stop whatever they were about to do.

"I…I didn't kill anyone else." He replied, sparking a small pulse of anger in Dean.

"I won't get mad at you for killing someone, Sam, but I will get mad if you lie about it."

"I didn't, Dean. I did…I…" Sam trailed off, obviously thinking that what he _did_ do was just as bad as killing someone. "Dean, I…I a-ate…Andy. I ate his heart." And with that the floodgates opened, Dean listening as Sam spilled his guts about Andy's death.

"Ava summoned a demon who killed him before I got there; ripped his chest apart. I walked in, and…I just lost it. I smelled the fresh blood, flowing like ice-water in the desert. I flew and dove in. I tore open his chest, pulled out his heart, and ate. I ate with no thoughts other than how _good_ it tasted, how I _never wanted to stop!_" Dean reached out and grasped Sam's shoulder firmly, acknowledging his pain without even attempting to understand it.

Sam curled into his brother, the tears for committing such a monstrous act finally breaking free. "It's okay, Sammy. You're going to be fine; I'll protect you." He said as he wrapped his other arm around his brother, rubbing his back as he sobbed. "It's…it won't, Dean. I a-ate Andy's heart! I'm…a fr-freaking monster!"

Dean pulled his brother back to look at him, grabbing his chin gently to force Sam to look at him. "Sam, listen to me. You are not a monster. You didn't kill anyone, and you won't. Jake doesn't count, he started it." Dean cut his brother off before he could mention killing Jake, knowing that he would. "Listen up, emo-boy, you are not a monster. You have done the best that you could under impossible circumstances. You have been a free-range werewolf for less than two days, and you've already managed to be around several normal people, without me, without killing them. You may have wanted to, but you didn't. They were practically leading a recovering druggy through a med-lab; Andy was the heroine at the end of the hallway."

Sam wasn't biting to Dean's bait, insisting on blaming himself. Dean gave up on words, pulling his brother back to his chest and just hugging him. Dean froze when Sam leant up and opened his mouth against Dean's carotid, but then forced himself to relax. _I'm never going to get used to that…_ he thought blandly. He began to wonder when and how he had changed so dramatically; He would have never allowed a human Sam this kind of affection. He would have offered a few pointless words of comfort, maybe let him sleep next to him, but Dean hadn't held Sam like this while he cried since he was around twelve. He had changed at the same time that Sam had, adjusting his life so that he could continue to take care of his brother.

Sam pulled back after focusing on Dean's heartbeat for several minutes, calming himself down; it had changed from a tempting method of making family, into the most comforting thing in the world. "Alright, let's get this over with." He said, standing up; he needed to save his brother.

"Sam-"

"Dean, I can't do this without you. I understand that we _should_ find another way of breaking the Deal, but we don't exactly have a lot of time to research. If we leave this cemetery without opening the gate, then the Hounds will come after you. We are going to need to eat pretty soon, and I don't see a McDonalds anywhere close. I don't like it either, but if releasing a few more demons into the world is the price for keeping your soul out of Hell, then I will gladly pay it." Sam shoved the mound of dirt back into the earth as soon as Dean was standing, and then began walking towards the center of the cemetery.

Dean kept quiet, knowing that Sam was right; he didn't like it, but his brother was right. He knew how it was to lose your sibling, and with Sam's current state of mind, he had no doubt that Sam would do far worse than selling his soul.

They arrived at a massive crypt with a lock in the shape of a Devil's Trap. In the center was a small, octagonal hole; a key-hole. Dean took the Colt out of his pocket and moved towards the door. "Are you sure, Sammy?" he asked, silently pleading for his brother to change his mind. Sam nodded, and Dean reluctantly shoved the Colt into the key-slot, and turned. There was a series of heavy clunks and whirrs, and then the Devil's Trap began to spin as it unlocked.

The spinning stopped and Dean pulled the Colt away, looking up as the door began to shake. "Sam…"

"Dean, take cover!" Sam yelled as he turned and ran, jumping behind one of the larger tombstones. Dean made it behind another just as the door exploded open, releasing a mass of black smoke. Sam stretched his mind and latched onto several of the released souls, burning part of them and causing them to break from the rest of the group. He quickly focused his entire being on those spirits, destroying the souls of the demons that had just been released. He jumped up and faced the Devil's Gate, attacking any demon that exited. He ignored the freed demons to shove his mind down into the gate, sensing for one demon in particular.

He felt something immensely powerful rising up quickly, and launched his focus at it. He barely managed to connect with the demon as it reached the door, pinning it in place before it could flee into the night. The black smoke that remained thrashing in the doorway began to coalesce into a specific shape. Sam watched in fearful awe as it began to form a distinctly masculine shape, forming strong arms and legs, and a broad chest. It gained color and solidity, forming a solid body. Its face was a continuous mass of changing faces, flipping from one to another, and then changing again. Sam saw Dean's face flip into being as one of the many visages, and knew that this was the right demon. "Lilith." He said, fighting to hold the demon in place. Her face suddenly stopped on Dean again, but retained his brother's image. The face blended perfectly with the body, making a form that would make it impossible for anyone but Sam to tell the difference between the real and the fake. "Let my brother go. Release him from his Deal." A dark laugh rang through the night, chilling both Sam and Dean to their bones.

"You have no idea, of what you speak." Dean's face spoke with a distorted voice, smoky and insubstantial. "Deal's are generally just another name for holding a soul. I hold no Deals; I possess souls."

"Then release his soul. That deal was whacked anyways. Release him, or I'll kill you." Sam flattened his hand and pushed forward lightly, causing Lilith's body to dissemble into a smoky outline, but it did not glow. Sam focused harder and the first spark ignited, causing an unholy scream to shatter from the demon. "You cannot just 'release' a soul! Once traded, a soul cannot be returned to the body by any demonic or corporeal entity!" Sam increased his focus, causing the shape to lose all humanity and tangible flames sprung up. "If I release his soul, he will die!" Lilith howled, causing Sam to reduce the pressure of his attack. "How do I save him?" he asked, his voice straining as he focused on keeping the now-desperate demon from fleeing.

"You cannot. His soul," a smoky arm materialized from the body and a small scroll emerged from the dark depths, "can never be released. If this parchment is destroyed, then Dean will die. The holder of this paper decides your brother's fate."

"Give it back to him, then." Sam said bluntly, exerting another round of energy to torture the demon into submission. "If he can take it from my hand, then he can have it." Lilith said, the dark voice higher with pain. It remained incorporeal and ghastly, but it had acquired a feminine quality, the pain of the used-to-be-woman bleeding through. Dean walked forward and grabbed for the scroll, but jerked back with a hiss, clutching his hand. "Dean?" Sam asked, struggling between holding Lilith and worrying about his brother. "I can't grab it, Sam. It is freakin' hot!"

"You can't touch your own soul, stupid human. It just can't be done." Sam paused, thinking, but only spent a second before he bit the bullet for Dean. "Give it to me, then." Lilith laughed a vomit-inducing, sadistic chuckle at those words. "Now, why would I give you your own brother's soul? Do you know how irresponsible that-gah!" She gasped as Sam threw a blast of demon-killing fire at her, igniting more and more of the smoke each second. "You have two seconds before I kill you and take it anyways." He threatened, finding it easier to kill her with each passing instant.

"Fine! Fine, you can have it! I have a deal for afterwards, however." Sam moved and grabbed Dean's soul, feeling a heavy tingle shoot up his arm as his flesh connected with the paper. "What is the deal? Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just kill you?"

"Because, I will give you information about souls. Spare my life, and I will tell you about the responsibility of holding them, so that you don't walk into this blind." Lilith was pleading, Sam realized. She knew that he had every capability of killing her, and there was nothing that she could do about it, except bargain. Sam knew that there would be rules to this soul business, so he figured that he would just cast her deep back into Hell after he got his information. "Deal. You can live, so start talking."

"You possess Dean's soul, now. If you die, he will die. You can never lose that parchment, or Dean's soul is free to be claimed by any other being in the universe. You can bind it to you, so that the parchment is not necessary, but it is dangerous. You will be hunted by every demon that ever finds out about it; a soul is a very valuable thing to possess down in Hell.

"When you are bound that deeply to a soul, your actions will be influenced by that individual. They can rise up to take control of you, if you are weak enough, or unstable. Likewise, you can take control of their body. If you are ever possessed, then the demon or ghost will have control of both of your bodies. The body of the soul is extremely susceptible to possession, seeing as the guiding force is held somewhere else.

"Dean can never truly die now, unless you drop first, because his soul is trapped with you. If his body is shredded, he will not pass on; he will remain with you, but he will be completely useless except as a little voice in your head. If you can find him a body, or rebuild his own, then you can give him control of it by using a binding spell; the same rules as the first body apply, where if it dies, Dean rockets back to being stuck inside of you.

"If you make a deal, Sammy, then the demon on the receiving end gets brother dearest as well. When the Hounds come for you, they will take him with." Sam listened intently to what Lilith was saying, taking it as truth because of their deal. "How do I bind him to me, get rid of the paper?" Sam asked, taking no chances of losing his brother's soul. Dean looked at him, concern on his face. "Are you sure, Sam? I mean, you can't undo it, if you take my soul into your body. I'm not worried about me here, but you'll have that responsibility forever!"

"Dean, I meant what I said. You're my older brother; there is nothing that I wouldn't do for you." Sam turned back to Lilith, briefly noting how the night was quiet besides the roar of the gate; no demons had tried to slip through since Lilith was trapped at the entrance. "Dean, go and close the gate; I don't want to risk any other demons getting out."

"What about her?" he asked, pointing to the shifting mass of smoke.

"I'll just send her back the long way." He said, shrugging. "Now, how do I do the binding?"

"It's a pretty nasty spell. Of course, being a werewolf and all, you'll love it. You have to soak the contract in Dean's blood, and then eat it. No joke!" she said, laughing at Sam's expression. "The paper will dissolve in your stomach, and as the blood mixes with your system, his soul will be mingled with yours; you'll be stuck together forever!"

Dean had managed to shut the Devil's Gate and returned to Sam's side. "Sam, you don't have to-"

"It's not that I don't _want_ to, Dean. I'm worried that if I do, I won't be able to resist biting you, or worse, eating you!" Sam snapped, turning only part of his attention to his brother; he was still focusing on holding Lilith. "Well, it's not like that will matter; I'll be stuck with you anyways, so killing me won't really do anything, and you can just kill my body and get me a new one if I ever lose it." Lilith laughed at Dean's callousness, at his complete lack of respect for his own future.

"Wow, you two are really a piece of work. So, do I get to go now?" Sam shook his head.

"I said I wouldn't kill you, not that I wouldn't send you back to Hell." He then forced the smoke down towards the ground, exorcising Lilith back to the Pit.

"Not so fast, Sammy!" A heavy rock then smashed into the back of Sam's head, sending him sprawling to the ground. "Sam!" Dean lunged forward and stopped Sam from hitting anything else. Lilith was released from Sam's hold and fled, disappearing into the night.

Dean spun towards Azazel with the Colt out, ready to fire. The demon merely waved his hand, though, and Dean was sent flying into a tombstone, cracking his head on the edge. Sam heard the crack, and it immediately gunned his body into action. He flew at Azazel with telekinesis, colliding perfectly with the demon's body. They crashed to the ground with Sam on top, Azazel completely worthless as he attempted to toss Sam away.

Dean's soul had been sealed carefully in a zipper-pocket of Sam's jacket, and he could feel it pressing against him, crumpling slightly from the awkward pressure. "I'm going to kill you for hurting my family." Sam growled, pressing his hand against Azazel's chest. A bright light began to glow from within his body, starting seizures as the demon was burned from the inside. "For killing Mom and Jessica; for tormenting me at Cold Oak and turning us into murderers; for hurting Dean." Sam threw everything he had at Azazel then, blasting the demon into millions of cinders, killing him for good. "I'll bet that you regret ever bleeding into my mouth, as a baby." He growled as he rose, stepping away from the smoking corpse.

Sam turned and sprinted to Dean, sliding to the ground at his brother's limp body. He saw the blood leaking quickly and steadily from his head, deciding that now was as good a time as any. Sam quickly pulled the contract out of his pocket, and pulled Dean's blood up towards it. His brother's blood smelled amazing, tempting Sam to dive forward and bite down, hard. He resisted, focusing on drenching the paper in blood. Holding the dripping parchment, he reached forward and stemmed the flow of blood from Dean's head, forcing the edges of the wound to heal together enough to hold its own against the rush.

Satisfied that Dean's body was okay, he folded the contract into a small square, holding it between his blood-soaked fingers. "Sorry, Dean." He said, shoving his brother's soul into his mouth. He nearly moaned in ecstasy as his brother's blood finally came into contact with his tongue. Dean tasted even better than Andy had, which was saying something. If it weren't for the knowledge that Dean would be disappointed in his lack of control, Sam would have lunged forward and bitten Dean right then. Sam contented himself with squeezing as much blood from the contract as he could with his tongue, and then swallowed the paper while keeping the thick liquid in his mouth. He closed his eyes and leaned against a headstone as he allowed the blood to slowly slide down his throat, jumpstarting every sense in his mouth.

"Having a good time there, Balto?" Sam jumped at Dean's voice, swallowing the rest of his blood quickly. "Gheen!" He shouted, forgetting about the sharpened teeth. He slowly helped his brother up and looked back towards the gate, taking in Azazel's dead body a final time. "So, he's finally dead." Dean sighed, closing his eyes briefly. Dean quickly broke the somber mood with one of his typical cracks at a serious topic.

"So? How does my blood taste? Is it as hot as me, or my soul? I mean, I knew that I was gorgeous, but I never expected my soul to be so hot that I couldn't even touch it!" Sam shook his head in disbelief at his brother's attitude. He still couldn't understand how Dean could make jokes about such serious topics. "Let's just say that, if I didn't love and respect you so much, you would be either dead or a werewolf right now. Way better than Andy."

"Well duh! That guy was an ass-hole! Who would want to eat one of those?" Sam laughed as they got back to the car, feeling only a small pang of sadness at Andy's death. "Shut up, Jerk."

"Not a chance bi- Hey, wait…I can't call you that anymore!" Dean cried out as he closed the door to the Impala. "Why not?" Sam asked, confused at Dean's statement.

"Well, you own my soul!" Dean shrugged and began driving. "I guess that makes me _your_ bitch, now!" Sam bent over and banged his head against the dashboard. This is what he would have to put up with forever, now. He sat up and looked at Dean, taking in his goofy grin and idiotic expression. "Shut up and drive, Dean."


	4. Chapter 4

**Okay, here's the enxt chapter. I'm back to the shorter long chapters, at least for now. I hope that this chapter is good. make sure to leave me a review and tell me what you thought of it.**

**Chapter 4**

**Are You There, Dean?**

Sam owned his brother's soul; Dean couldn't help but feel a little weirded out by that. It also, strangely, made him feel incredibly comfortable, however. He spent the entire drive to Bobby's exploring that feeling, wondering why having Sam own his soul made him feel so secure; so safe. It could have been because Sam was a nearly indestructible creature of the supernatural, so no matter what happened to him, Dean would be fine. As long as Sam didn't get his heart punctured by anything silver. That sentiment didn't feel quite right though, so Dean explored other possibilities. After nearly two hours of solid thinking in silence, he finally decided that it was because he had never had somewhere that he could call 'home' before. Now he was to spend the rest of his life with his mind and soul within his brother's chest, and it felt good; he finally had a home.

"Dean, isn't that the turn off back there?" Sam tore his brother from his silent reverie, calling his eyes back a hundred feet. "Dang it! Alright, hold on there, bro!" Dean suddenly twisted the wheel sharply, causing the Impala to spin in a 180, and then gunning the engine to make the turn. Sam clutched the arm rest on the door, hating the sharp and jerky motions of his brother's driving. Even though no car accident on earth could kill Sam –unless there happened to be a bed of silver spikes for him to hit –he was still uneasy when Dean pulled these stunts that would be life-threatening if there were other drivers on the road.

Relaxing his breathing, Sam made conversation to distract his thumping heart. "So, Dean, what were you thinking so hard about that you missed the turn?"

"Um…nothin'. I was just, you know, thinking. I guess that it still hasn't hit me that Azazel is gone, and I'm not going to Hell. Well, yet anyways." He chuckled to throw off any tension that would have mounted. Sam could _feel_ the lie, deep within his chest, but he decided to ignore it; Dean had never been one to spill his guts and, as much as everything had changed between them since Sam became a werewolf, that was still the same.

Dean pulled up into Bobby's junkyard, parking in an empty space on the dirt expanse. The old hunter heard the grumble of the car, and rushed to the front door; the boys had been gone longer than Bobby had expected without a call to let him know how they were. "Hey, boys! Sam, it's good to see you back up and running." Dean froze when he realized that Bobby had known that Sam would come back. "Bobby… You knew that Sam would come back? Why didn't you tell me?! I was freaking out, mourning my _dead_ brother!"

"I tried, Dean. I figured that you were just missing him, and wishing that he would hurry up. You told me to get out, so I got out. He is a werewolf after all, Dean. A little strip of iron ain't gonna do much more than hurt the guy for a while. Even spilling out all o' his spinal fluid won't do anything if you don't pierce his heart with silver." Sam sensed his brother's anger flaring up at the 'thank you captain obvious' tone that was coming through in Bobby's voice. He moved and grabbed Dean's shoulder gently, squeezing and telling him to chill out. _Dean, calm down. I'm here, I'm fine, and we're no worse for wear. Everything worked out in the end, just let it go._ Dean's muscles all suddenly relaxed, making Sam need to hurry and support his brother's weight before he fell. "Jeeze, Dean, don't relax that much!"

"Sorry, Sammy. I'm just really tired, suddenly." Bobby had rushed forward to help the brothers into the house. "What's up with Dean?" He asked, lifting Dean's useless legs onto the couch while Sam lifted his brother's torso. "We've kinda had a lot happen, since I died. It's been a long two days.

"Oh yeah, I figured out why I had a demon in me, when I was first bitten." Sam continued at Bobby's questioning gaze, encouraged by the unbridled need to know. "When I was a baby, a demon bled into my mouth. That awakened my psychic powers, and so I guess that when I got the werewolf venom, the demon blood didn't like it a whole lot, and rose up." Bobby shook his head at the watery explanation, letting the information fill in all of the gaps about _why_ things had been happening with Sam. "That is also why my mom died." Bobby's head whipped around to face Sam, having barely heard the admission from the younger man. "She walked in…while he was doing it. He killed her because…she interrupted."

"Wow…Dad never told…us that." Dean spoke up from the couch, opening his eyes enough to look at his brother. "Well, Dad didn't really say a whole lot about mom at all, so…" Sam's voice was a little harsher than he had intended, but Dean shrugged it off; it seemed that Daddy's little soldier had gotten over some of his fanatical defensive habits. "Hey, Sam, do you think that you could go and scrounge me up some food? I'm starving." Dean said, slowly lifting himself into a sitting position on the couch. "Yeah, sure thing man. I'll be back in like, ten minutes." Sam stood up and went towards the kitchen, leaving the two older hunters alone.

"So, Dean how-"

"Bobby, can you get me Terro Cards?" Dean cut right through his question, breaking right into what he needed from the man. "Terro Cards? Why in blazes do you need them nasty pieces of work?"

"I just do, Bobby. Can you get me any, or not?" Dean was in full scale hunter mode, not taking any crap or distractions. "Well, I can make a few, but it's a nasty process, and it's a nasty business. Unless you tell me why, you're on your own, Dean." Dean huffed and sat in silence for a few seconds before answering. "Sammy owns my soul. I need them because of that."

"Well, I think that's goin' a bit past brotherly devotion-"

"No, Bobby! He literally owns my soul. I sold it to a demon, not knowing that Sam would come back from the dead on his own, and Sam got it back for me. I can't ever have possession of my own soul again, so to prevent it getting stolen, Sam bound it to his own. I can't die, because Sam holds my soul in _his_ body. That is why I need the Terro Cards. If Sam dies, then I die, but if I die, then I'll just be stuck inside of Sam's body until we can find me an empty one to repossess. My body has lost a lot of importance in the last day, so if I can take a silver bullet for him, then it's a win-win scenario." Dean hung his head after spilling everything to Bobby, desperate for the older hunter to help him help Sam. Despite finally feeling secure in something, Dean had lost a lot of his confidence in his ability to keep his brother safe. He needed something to hold onto that he could protect Sammy with.

Bobby sat in silent deliberation, taking in everything that had happened to the two boys in the short time that they had been apart. Anger at Dean for being stupid enough to sell his soul in the first place was replaced by relief that they had recovered it, even if it wasn't Dean's anymore. "Alright, idjit, I'll help you. I don't want either one of ya to die, and makin' a life-swap Terro Card is a pretty minor evil in comparison to what could happen otherwise."

Sam chose that moment to return with several sandwiches stacked up on a plate in one hand, a packet of raw hamburger in the other. Sam pulled out a fork after handing the sandwiches to Dean and Bobby, and then tore open the hamburger and began eating. Dean and Bobby stared at him with mild disgust, but they quickly covered it up. "What? It was the best thing in the kitchen, and I don't exactly want to go and rip out someone else's heart." Sam's eyes clouded over at the last part of his comment, and Dean could feel his brother's guilt and sorrow, permeating deep into his own chest.

Bobby ignored the heart part, and Dean sent a mental push at his brother, knowing that he would feel it even if he wasn't paying attention. Sure enough, Sam looked at Dean in response, and Dean began thinking reassurances at Sam, forcing the emotions behind his thoughts into his brother's head. _We've been over this, Sam. You need to stop beating yourself up for eating a bleeding dead guy's heart. It was a better thing than making a whacked deal and selling your soul. _

_Do you regret it? Having sold your soul and now having it inside of me? _Dean immediately crushed Sam's mental query, smashing down the sadness and depression that he could feel accompanying it. _No. I regret making the deal for no reason, but if you had actually died, I would have made the same deal. It's not even a bad thing, having my soul inside of you._ Dean stopped there, and Sam could feel that this was getting close to what Dean had been thinking about in the car. Sam pushed lightly at Dean, asking but not demanding for details on the thoughts. Dean conceded._ Fine. I like having my soul inside of you. I've never had a home before; never had a place that I could stay for more than a few weeks and feel safe. Now that my soul is inside of you, I have a place to stay forever. I finally have a home, even if it is a mobile one. It feels good._

Dean pulled back from the contact so that he could eat his sandwich, ignoring Bobby's confused look at the boys. He knew that something had transpired between them just now, but he couldn't for the life of him think of what it was. "Sorry, Bobby. Me and Dean were just talking about something, and we forgot that no one else can hear us." Sam didn't fill any details, a fact that wasn't lost on Bobby. He decided not to push, because it was obviously something that would stay between the brothers.

"Alright well, I'm going to go upstairs and work on some research for a new lead that I found." Bobby said after finishing his sandwich. He gave Dean a quick glance, and Sam was oblivious due to his appetite. "We should probably get to bed soon, Sammy. We've been going on empty for close to two days now. A few hours of sleep on the passenger side of a car does _not_ make up for nearly eighteen hours of missed sleep."

****

Dean and Sam were stalking through the deserted house, sweeping the EMF scanner back and forth to find the malevolent spirit that they were hunting. They knew that the body was in the house, but they had no clue where. Generally spirits decided to hang out near their bodies, when they haunted the same location, and the brother's were planning on the ghost attacking them once they got close enough.

Sam whirled suddenly, and threw his iron knife behind them. Dean turned just in time to see the knife pass through the ghost and stick into the door behind it. The ghost had dissembled on contact with the knife, and they now had a good clue as to where the body was. The boys stole over to the doorway, attempting to open the locked knob. Sam spun his hand slightly, causing the lock to click and the knob to turn open. "Nice knob-work, Sammy." Dean played, moving into the small room beneath the stairs. Dean gave the room a sweep with the EMF detector, stopping when it flashed at one of the walls. "Hey, Air-bud, come give me a paw here." Dean retreated from the small room, leaving the buzzing scanner at the wall for Sam to open up. Dean heard wood splintering, and then the mutilated corpse of the small girl that they were hunting floated out to him. Sam followed her out, leading the way to the fireplace; to avoid burning the whole house down when they torched her corpse.

The boys emptied an entire can of salt over the curled up body as it rested in the iron grate, followed by a whole can of gasoline. Dean had struck the match and was getting ready to throw it in, when a shrill scream was heard, followed by a sharp piercing in his chest. He lurched forward, dropping the match into the fireplace and watching it erupt into blue flames of the salty-supernatural. He turned dumbly to Sam as he suffocated, who's eyes were wide and unseeing, as blood leaked from a wound that had pierce through to the front of Sam's chest. Dean grabbed the knife as he felt his life ebbing away, noting the 625 that was engraved on the handle; pure silver. Sam pitched forward onto the floor and Dean nearly lost the words that would save them as his brain began to shut down.

"Strenuus Formidonis Pecto vita verto." He muttered, feeling the heat of the Terro Card activating in his pocket. He blinked once and the wound in Sam's back and chest was gone, and blood began to flood down the front of Dean's shirt. He closed his eyes again, and fell into darkness.

His eyes opened again a moment later, and he could feel the hot, sticky liquid staining both the front and back of his shirt. His eyes blinked on their own for a moment, adjusting to the light from the fire that burned beyond his eyesight. His head began to move and his arms lifted him from the ground, and then he began to freak out. He tried to move his arms, but they ignored him and continued lifting him up onto his feet. His eyes then moved to the body on the floor, and he recognized his hair and shirt, blood soaking the entire swath of material._ Oh, crap!_ He thought, and then he was flying towards the body. "Dean? Dean! Dean!" Sam's voice came from his mouth, and Dean realized where he was. Sam had taken his body in his arms, and was rocking back and forth on the ground. _SAM!_ Dean shouted, but there was no response from his brother. Dean was trapped in his brother's body, all alone in his useless prison.

Sam grabbed Dean's body in his arms, moaning and crying his brother's name. Despite all of the blood, there was absolutely no desire to eat or bite his brother at all. The thought of Dean being gone forever had killed his appetite.

He couldn't feel Dean's mind, and began to wonder why the bond with Dean's soul wasn't working. Lilith had been telling the truth; Sam would have known if she was lying about the spell. He reached out his mind towards his brother, but the body was an empty shell. He then threw his mind out all over the house, searching for some sign that his brother's soul was around somewhere. He felt something within his chest that wasn't part of him, and he immediately latched onto it. Sam shoved his mind at the small abnormality within him, suddenly feeling swamped with his brother's presence.

Dean was panicking, unable to find anything tangible in the loneliness that was Sam's chest. His brother could see and feel everything that Sam felt, but he was unable to detect his presence there with him. "Dean, listen to me." Sam said out loud, immediately feeling the acknowledgement within his chest. "Dean, you're not alone. I can feel you, but you can't feel me trying to talk to you. You're inside of me, right now. I'm going to find a way to get you back to your own body, Dean." Sam was already missing the snarky comments of his brother, unable to detect actual words from Dean's spirit.

Sam lifted the body of his brother with his telekinesis, leaving the burning body in the fireplace to burn itself out. He left the house and walked out to the car, taking his shirt off as Dean's body floated behind him. He laid his shirt down in the back, folding it in half to increase the thickness. He then took off Dean's shirt and mopped the blood from his chest and back with it, throwing it back to the house and guiding it into the fireplace. Sam set Dean down on his less-bloody shirt, using the material as a buffer for the seats; even though Dean had stopped gushing blood, the wound still secreted some blood with every motion.

Sam drove quickly to the nearest crossroads, not caring that it was in the middle of a paved road. He was going to get his brother his body back, even if he had to kill a hundred crossroads demons to do it. He left the car and popped open the trunk, pulling out the pre-prepared summoning box that they kept in the trunk; Sam had no idea why they had it, since they were never supposed to make deals. He slipped his driver's license into the box and locked it, making his way over to the exact center of the road. He shot out a blast of energy, shattering the road in a neat little hole. He lifted the dirt and crumbled asphalt and dropped the box in, allowing the road materials to fall back down on top of it.

Sam waited and stretched his mind, scanning for the approach of the demon. He felt it rushing towards him, but stopping halfway. Sam launched his mind at it, latching onto its soul and dragging it the rest of the way to the crossroads. Sam blinked once and saw the woman standing on the road, black dress falling just above her knees; it was a different demon this time, but the body seemed to have been recycled. He could sense the demon's discomfort at having been forced here, but she quickly squashed it, putting on a cocky façade. She turned to address Sam, lifting her eyebrows in surprise at his appearance. "Ooh, nice body. You Winchesters get around enough; you should have a certain dress code whenever you decide to summon me. I'm thinking maybe a few layers less around your legs though, but that is an appropriate shirt for you, Sammy." Sam shivered lightly as the demon flirted with him, sensing that there was a prick of genuine attraction towards him. He decided to get right down to business, instead of indulging the demon with comebacks.

"I want you to heal my brother's body. Make it so that he can inhabit it again, instead of being stuck in my chest."

"Oh, Sammy. You know that I can't return his soul to his body. Since he can feel everything through you though, I could give him-"

"I can do the rest; I just need you to make his body livable. Heal the knife wound, and his heart, and make it so that when I return him control of his body, he won't lose it again because of blood loss, or anything." Sam made his demands perfectly clear, knowing that there was no way for the demon to misinterpret it as anything. "So, you're going to trade both of your souls, so that Dean can have his little body fixed up? That seems pretty stupid, even for a jock as hot as you."

"I'm not offering my soul." Sam raised his hand and clenched his fist, causing the demon to shatter the night with a horrible scream. "I'm offering you yours. I'll let you live, and stop the pain, if you agree." Sam let the screaming continue, steadily increasing the level of torture that he was inflicting, until he felt the consent bleed into the demon's mind. He eased up and allowed her to speak, nodding as she gasped for breath. "O-okay. I'll do it. I'll heal him." She stood up straight, still breathing with some difficulty. She plastered a scary smile onto her face, and Sam recognized it as yet another flirting smile. "You know, I never pictured you as the type to hurt a woman; it's kind of a turn on, Sammy. I'll heal him, but a deal is still a deal, so I'll need that sealing kiss." Sam shook his head, but walked towards the horny demon, knowing that it was necessary.

He pressed his lips to hers and allowed her to manipulate his mouth, entering the semi-make out for the deal to work. She moved to wrap her arms around his neck, and that is when he forced her to stop. "Aw, Sammy, you need to loosen up a bit; relax for a while. You're way too ten-"

"Get away from me." He said, throwing her a good ten feet back. She huffed and turned her back, walking away. "Whenever you go looking for a break from all that tension, you know where to find me." He shivered as she disappeared, and then turned and jogged back to the car. He opened the back and examined his brother's body, finding no signs of a knife wound, he crammed himself behind the wheel and took off towards Bobby's again; he needed the older hunter's expertise to do the binding spell properly.

****

He threw open the door and walked through, Dean's corpse trailing after him. He could feel Bobby's alarm at the sound of the front door opening, and called out to put him at ease. "Chill, Bobby. It's just me. I need your help though, with a binding spell." Bobby walked into the living room from the kitchen, taking in Dean's floating body. "So, I'm guessing that he used the Terro Card?" Sam looked at him confusedly, and then searched his pockets for anything abnormal. He pulled out a stiff piece of cardboard, finding the inscriptions of a Terro Card. He flipped it over and examined the picture; a black silhouette of a body and a white silhouette on opposite ends, and interchanging arrows connecting the two. "A life-swap Terro. Did you make this, Bobby?" Sam could tell that it was relatively new, and it wasn't of the best quality that he had ever seen. At the older hunter's nod, he put it back into his pocket.

"Well, I guess that it's a good thing; the ghost stabbed me with a silver knife, right through my chest. It's perfect luck that we're both still alive; I think that Dean barely managed to activate it before he collapsed. Sam delved within himself and felt Dean's mental nod, agreeing with Sam's assumption. "Dean agrees that he passed out almost immediately after activating it."

"So, you can hear him?" Sam nodded, and the old hunter huffed in exasperation; he had never heard of a soul being owned and bound to another person, and so everything that the boys revealed was a new piece of information for him to write down.

"Bobby, I need you to perform a binding spell to put him back in his own body. Lilith told us that it would work, when I forced the instructions on soul-care from her." Bobby turned around, motioning for them to follow him.

Once upstairs, Bobby gathered a bowl and the rest of the required ingredients. "So, since Dean is living in your blood, I assume that you want to bind your blood with his body?"

"Whatever works, Bobby. You know as much about this part of the deal as I do." Bobby grabbed a knife and, after mixing and crushing the ingredients within the bowl, he grabbed Sam's hand. He pushed the knife into his palm, drawing a line of blood downwards. Sam winced as his blood slid down his hand and dripped into the bowl. Bobby then grabbed a bottle of water and, chanting ancient Celtic, poured the water into the bowl. The contents mixed and dissolved, forming a deep black liquid. He kept up the chant and lifted the bowl, pouring the contents over Dean's body.

Dean watched in morbid fascination as Bobby lifted the bowl over his body, and began to pour the mixture onto him. A piercing cold sensation suddenly shot through Dean, but he could tell that Sam could not feel it. Dean felt himself being pulled back into darkness, and he struggled against it. He lost the fight, in the end.

Sam watched the contents of the bowl spill over Dean's body, and he felt Dean struggling against something within his chest. Suddenly, he felt Dean's mind ripped from his body, but he could still feel the presence of his soul; Sam still held that within himself. Dean suddenly shot upright, gasping for air. Sam jumped at him, a smile breaking his face. "Dean! You're back!" Sam pulled away, looking his brother in the eyes and taking in the haggard look. "Dude, that demon totally violated us. If this ever happens again, don't summon that particular girl." Sam chuckled at Dean's words, glad that his snarky attitude was still in contact. "Demon? Sam, what-"

"A demon totally tried to rape Sammy, while I was in the room! It felt so weird, I felt like hurling! Of course I couldn't, since _someone_ wasn't letting our stomach get all knotty and twisted."

"Jeez Dean, you make it sound like you wanted us to hurl all over the place." Sam said, smiling as he stood up. "You bet I did. That was nasty. Come to think of it, so is this nasty goop that's all over my chest. I need a shower."

"Have at it, kid. I'll go downstairs and cook us some grub; you've got to be starving." Bobby left to go cook, leaving the two boys alone up in the attic. "It's good to have you back, Dean. As much as I love you, though, having you stuck in my chest with no way of hearing your bad puns and constant jokes was pretty crappy. Thanks for saving us, though. That was really smart of you, to make the Terro Cards." Dean shrugged and reached for Sam's outstretched hand, pulling himself up from the dusty ground. "Seriously dude, if you want to hug me again in a chick flick moment, at least wait until I'm not all covered in this nasty crap."

**While I was writing the scene with the demon, I kept thinking of a Dwight Shrut quote from the Office. If anyone wants to know what it was, leave a review asking for it and I'll tell you. I think that it fits pretty well. **


End file.
